Lily's List
by MotherCrumpet
Summary: LILY EVAN'S IMPOSSIBLY LONG LIST OF CHANGES THAT JAMES POTTER WOULD HAVE TO GO THROUGH IN ORDER FOR LILY EVANS TO DATE HIM is a list started by Lily her first night at Hogwarts. Will Lily risk getting hurt or simply add to the list when James changes?
1. Chapter 1: To Write A List

**AN/ Okay guys, I'm not JK Rowling, so don't get your hopes up! I don't own Lily and James or anything that you recognise! You should know that, but i'M just saying it so I don't get sued for two cents or somehting, cause that's realyl all I have...**

**Summary:Lily Evans's impossibly long list of changes James Potter would have to go through in order for Lily Evans to date him; a list started by Lily evans the first nightat Hogwarts, the name itself isself-explanitory. But when James starts actually changing, will Lily really date him? Or will she think of more things that he'll have to change in order for her to date him because she's afraid of getting hurt?...It's LEJP if you hadn't guessed.**

**First chapter dedicated to _Aznchic2009_, my favorite beta who never lets me down and will start beta-ing in the next chapter, well, probably. I betaed this one myself, so nobody has ever read it before! **

**And, without further ado: ENJOY!**

**Lily's List,Chapter 1: To Write a List!**

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**1. To Write a List**

Lily Evans smoothed down her plaid school skirt and adjusted her tie as the Hogwarts Express came to a halt. Then she turned to see if her new friend, Alice Prewett, was ready to go. Alice smiled a slightly strained smile and nodded.

Lily decided that it was her duty to keep her new friend's mind off the looming uncertainty of what would happen at the school the first night there. Lily glanced over to make sure her trunk was shut and smiled reassuringly at Alice.

Anyone who knows the backgrounds of these two girls may find this last statement strange. And, for any person other than the ever confident Lily Evans, it was. You see, the girls were on their way to their first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The train, the Hogwarts express, had taken them into the little village of Hogsmeade somewhere in United Kingdom.

Now, you are probably wondering why the fact that Lily is assuring Alice is strange. Well, in order to grasp that notion we must first take a look at the individuals themselves.

Lily Marie Evans was a little tall for her age. She had the smile of an angel and the temper of a typical red-head. Her eyes could dazzle almost anyone in the world; they were almond shaped and the most beautiful shade of green imaginable. Her parents were Muggles, non-magic people, and she had never even heard of Hogwarts before a little over a month ago. Even so, Lily Evans was the one reassuring her friend that everything was going to be all right.

Alice Anastasia Prewett was a blonde beauty. Her liquid blue eyes were always smiling and there was frequently a smile on her face that lit up the room. Alice was the daughter of the famous Dark Wizard catchers (Aurors) the Prewetts. Her two older brothers, Gideon and Fabian, were also Aurors, the best of their time. Alice had known about Hogwarts since her birth. She was very excited when Gideon and then Fabian had gone to Hogwarts and come home to tell her all about it. But Alice was the kind of person that tended to worry about unknown things. And, along with her knowledge of Hogwarts, also came the knowledge of Lord Voldemort, the most feared Dark Wizard of the time, of any time really. Alice had told Lily all about him, but Lily hadn't yet seen first hand the destruction Lord Voldemort caused every day.

"What's the first thing you want to do as a witch?" Lily asked Alice as she pulled her unmanageable, auburn hair into a ponytail.

"I don't know," Alice said, forgetting for the time being the arrival at the school and opening the compartment to climb off the train.

"Come on," Lily urged, "You must have some idea."

"Well," admitted Alice practically, "I always thought I'd like to learn to duel, you never know when some good dueling abilities will save your life. What about you, Lily?"

"That's no fair," Lily commented laughing, "I was thinking of taming my hair or something."

"Well," Alice replied, "I have the perfect thing for you. It tames unruly curls. I think it would work wonders on your hair."

The two girls had completely forgotten about the arrival at the school and climbed off the train talking excitedly about things that eleven-year-old girls frequently talked about. I shan't bore you with the details.

"Look Severus, it's a pretty Mudblood," a platinum blonde boy drawled.

The boy who had spoken appeared to be in at least the third year and had a sneer on his face. He was accompanied by a first-year, who was a rather disgusting looking boy. The second boy, Severus, had dark greasy hair and a long, hooked nose. He gave the girls a look of pure disgust.

"We shouldn't bother with them, Lucius. They're not worth our precious time," Severus replied with a sneer on his greasy face.

At the word 'Mudblood' Alice had gasped and turned very pale. She froze where she was, right near the entrance to the train and Lily attempted to more her, completely ignoring the boys.

"No, no, Severus, pretty girls are always worth our time," Lucius replied with a malicious grin on his face, "You must be a first-year. Am I correct?"

"Bugger off, Malfoy," a voice said from behind Lily and Alice, "You too Snape."

Lily turned to face a boy, slightly shorter than she was with the dorkiest glasses she had ever seen. His messy jet black hair stood up in all directions and he was twirling his wand in a bored sort of manner.

"I think I was talking to the Mudblood here," Lucius Malfoy replied.

"Keep your large head out of it," Severus warned.

"Bugger off," the boy said sternly as he stopped twirling his wand, "And I don't want to hear you ever call her, or anyone else, that filthy word again."

"What are you going to do about it?" Severus Snape asked maliciously.

"Leave it, Severus, we will deal with him later. We would attract too much attention here," Lucius commanded as he took the greasy boy by the arm and stalked off.

"Are you okay?" the messy haired boy asked, eying Alice with concern.

"I'm fine, and Alice will be okay, she's only gone into some sort of shock," Lily replied.

Alice gained the color in her cheeks rather rapidly, "They called you a, a…"

"Mudblood?" Lily supplied.

"Yes, that," Alice said flustered.

"I noticed," Lily replied, "They wouldn't go away either."

"James Potter," the messy haired boy said as he stuck out his hand. He obviously had expected some sort of reaction from Lily when he gave his name. He got no such reaction from Lily but did receive a small gasp from Alice.

"Lily Evans," Lily replied, shaking his hand.

"I don't see how they knew that you were Muggle born," James commented, amazed.

"What do you mean?" Lily asked, confused.

"That filthy word they called you, Mudblood," James explained, "It's the worst thing a Witch or Wizard can call a Muggle born."

"How did you know I was Muggle born?" Lily asked suspiciously.

"You didn't react at all when I told you my name," James replied, "Most people in the Wizarding world have heard of the Potter family, my parents are both top Aurors in the ministry."

"Oh," Lily said.

"I didn't get your name," James said as he turned to Alice.

"Alice Prewett."

"Are you Gideon and Fabian's sister? They work closely with my parents."

"Yes," Alice replied proudly, "They told me about you. I think they mentioned something about a party…"

James made a strangled sort of sound and immediately went rather pale.

"Oh, erm, yes, I think they have been to some of my parents dinner parties," James said in a strained sort of voice. He was spared the embarrassment of Lily's asking what Gideon and Fabian had said about the party by the arrival of two other rather good looking boys.

"There you are," the black haired one said, "We've been looking all over for you James. Why'd you run off…? Oh, hello," he had just noticed Lily and Alice standing there.

"Remus Lupin," the second boy said as he offered his hand.

"Lily Evans."

"Alice Prewett."

The girls each shook his hand and then turned to the other boy.

"And you are?" Lily prompted.

"Oh, right," the other boy had been staring open-mouthed at the two girls, "Sirius Black."

Lily shook his hand but Alice eyed it carefully.

"Shake his hand Alice," Lily hissed, "He's not going to bite."

"No, but Remus here, OW!" Sirius yelped as James kicked him soundly in the shins, "That was uncalled for!"

James raised his eyebrows and turned to Alice, "Don't worry about Sirius being a Black. He despises anything to do with his family's history, right Sirius?"

Sirius stopped hopping around in pain and nodded his affirmative before resuming his hopping.

"Ow, ow, ow, James, you kick hard!" Sirius protested.

"Oh grow up you big baby," James teased, "Wait a second, where's that other guy, Peter?"

"Yes Peter, well he tried to follow you, but he," Remus then whispered something to James.

"He got his robes stuck on the train?" James asked in disbelief, and quite loudly too, "and he's ripped them completely into shreds?"

Remus Lupin nodded solemnly. Lily started to laugh and Alice shot her a look that clearly said, 'you're being awful, at least pretend you're sympathetic.'

"Rather sad, isn't it?" Sirius asked, finally stopping his hopping around in pain.

"Yes, but I'd better go help him. Since you guys didn't manage to free him, I guess I'll have to do it," James replied as he strutted off, reminding Lily of a constipated chicken.

"So, what do you think of James Potter?" Alice asked, "Gideon and Fabian say he's always playing pranks at his parents' dinner parties."

"I think he's rather arrogant," Lily replied, frowning, "He reminds me of the rich kids at my old school. They knew exactly how to make you feel poor and stupid without coming out and bragging all the time. Subtle hints, you know?"

Alice smiled, "Well, maybe he has the right to be arrogant."

"Yes, but did you see how he kept running his hand through his hair and those are probably the dorkiest glasses I have ever seen! And he expects everyone to know who he is!" Lily insisted.

Alice just smiled and shook her head. The two girls watched the boys disappear out of sight and then the thought occurred to them that they had no idea where to go.

"Firs' years, over here!" A booming voice called.

Lily and Alice started over in that direction but stopped as soon as the caught sight of the owner of the voice. He was a tall man, easily twice as tall as the tallest student and he was built proportionate to his height. A thick mass of hair and beard cover most of his face other than his small black eyes, which twinkled kindly.

"That's Hagrid," the Head Boy, a Gryffindor named Andrew Weasley (Arthur Weasley's younger brother) said, "Go on, he won't hurt you. The first years go across the lake to get to the school."

And with that Andrew Weasley gave the two girls a slight push and they started over to the huge man. He grinned at them and motioned for them to go on past him and down the path behind him. They started down the path and soon came to the edge of a lake where a whole fleet of boats were stationed. Lily looked over at Alice questioningly. Alice shrugged in response and they joined the rest of the wide-eyed first-years beside the boats.

"Go 'ead and get in," Hagrid said in his booming voice, "I'll jest look 'round fer any stragglers and be back."

The first years clambered into boats. Lily spotted Severus Snape getting into a boat near the one she and Alice were about to climb into and pointed him out to Alice. The two friends hurried to the other end of the boat dock. The only boat with enough room for both girls was the one holding James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter. Peter looked like he had gotten into a fight with a blender and lost. His robes were ripped down the front and hung in tattered clumps near the feet.

"Oy, Evans, Prewett," James called, "Over here!"

Lily clambered into the boat and sat down in the empty seat farthest in which happened to be next to James. Alice followed her and sat down, eying the boat skeptically.

"They're magic," Lily muttered to her, "I can feel it."

Alice looked a little more reassured but still worried that the boats weren't water tight. They did appear to be made from some warped wood and looked ready to fall apart. Lily noticed that there were no oars.

"Brilliant," she told Alice, "We're not going to have to row at all."

"What do you mean?" Alice asked.

But before Lily could answer the booming voice of Hagrid spoke, "Go 'head, climb 'n with 'em. They got more room 'n anyone else."

Lily looked up to see a boy with dirty blonde hair climb into the boat. He grinned shyly at Alice and offered her his hand.

"Frank Longbottom," he said as Alice shook his hand shyly.

Alice didn't reply but instead blushed. Lily realized it was time to rescue her friend.

"I'm Lily Evans, and this is Alice Prewett," Lily said as she gestured to Alice, "She's a little nervous about this whole thing."

"Really? I am too," Frank said and he and Alice started talking amicably.

Lily grinned triumphantly and turned to listen to find out what the others were talking about.

"The Harpies had better get training if they want to make the Quidditch playoffs in a couple of years," Sirius said to James.

"They haven't got a chance," James argued, "They'd have to beat the Wasps by at least 300 points in order to stay in their class."

"Not if the Budgies beat the Wasps," Sirius argued.

Remus was looking out into the lake and Peter was looking at James and Sirius like they were gods. Lily rolled her eyes. Then she noticed something on the horizon. She smacked James in the back of the head.

"Look," she said pointing.

James grumbled something about girls and their tendency to hit for no reason at all while rubbing the back of his head and looked to see where Lily was pointing. Ahead of them rose a huge grandly lit castle on a cliff. It had hundreds of turrets and several huge towers. Every single window in the entire place appeared to be lit as if by magic, which, Lily reminded herself, they probably were. The boats appeared to be heading towards a solid cliff upon which the castle was perched.

"That place is huge!" Sirius exclaimed, his eyes glinting mischievously.

"How did you think all those students were going to fit inside it otherwise?" Lily asked.

"Um, that thought didn't actually occur to me," Sirius admitted.

"Alice," Lily exclaimed as she shook her friend's arm, "Look!"

Alice let out an amazed gasp at the sight of Hogwarts. The group was so enthralled by the castle that they didn't notice the gaping cave that they were about to enter.

"DUCK!" bellowed Hagrid from the rear boat.

Lily ducked and pulled James down with her, which was a good thing because he hadn't bothered to duck at all.

"Good idea Evans, we can kiss down here," James told her, smirking.

Lily smacked him across the face with a resounding SMACK.

"Not even in your dreams Potter," Lily retorted as she clambered out of the boat which had come to a stop and yanked Alice with her along the jetty while James nursed his red cheek.

Hagrid bustled around ignoring the confused students and tying all of the boats together. He then climbed in the front one and they started to move away. The students watched him go, most of them in varied stages of hysteria.

"For God's sake," Lily muttered as she pushed her way through the crowd, "You'd think that someone had gotten blown up."

"Lily, what do we do?" Alice demanded. She too was nearing hysteria. "We'll all die here!"

Lily lightly smacked Alice, who immediately regained her senses.

"Everyone, calm down!" Lily shouted at the top of her lungs. Everyone immediately went silent thinking that a teacher had come. "Follow me!"

The crowd of hysterical students followed Lily up the stairs, most of them unaware that she wasn't a teacher or an older student since they couldn't see her due to the other students in front of them. Lily and Alice came to a door and stopped. Lily tried the door and it was locked.

"She's not a teacher!" Snape bellowed from the front of the crowd, "She's just a stupid Mudblood!"

This statement caught James' attention and he struggled to the front of the crowd, followed closely by Sirius, Remus and Peter. Lily ignored Snape and the growing unease of the students behind her.

"We're all going to die down here, and it's all the Mudblood's fault!" Snape called again.

"Shut up, Snape!" James Potter said threateningly.

"What are you going to do about it?" Snape spat, "It's St. Potter, the Mudblood's friend; I'm shaking in my boots!"

"I'm warning you," James said, shaking with suppressed rage.

"I'm warning both of you!" Lily bellowed as she whirled around, "I've figured out how to get through this door. Now all of you calm down! You're being hysterical for no reason!"

Snape pushed his way to the back of the crowd to get away from James and Alice hurried up beside Lily.

"What are you doing?" Alice asked.

"I'm going to unlock the door," Lily said matter-of-factly.

"Have you ever done magic before?" Alice asked doubtfully.

"No, but don't worry." Lily pulled out her wand, waved it and said, "Alohomora."

The door clicked loudly and Lily yanked it open to find a very surprised, stern looking lady on the other side. The lady quickly hid her surprise and peered around at the students sternly.

"Thank you Miss…"

"Evans," Lily supplied, "Lily Evans."

"Yes, thank you Miss Evans for taking control of the situation. I am Professor McGonagall, for those of you who do not already know me. I am the Transfiguration teacher. If you'd be so kind as to follow me," and with that Professor McGonagall turned and led the students out through the door and down the hall. She opened a door in a large Entrance Hall and motioned for the students to go ahead in.

"What happened to your robes?" She asked Peter as he went by.

"I-I-I g-got s-stuck on the t-train, P-p-professor," Peter stammered.

Professor McGonagall sighed and gestured for him to go ahead into the Great Hall with everyone else. He hurried to catch up with James, Sirius and Remus but tripped over his robes and knocked down Snape. Snape sneered at him and Peter scampered off looking very much like a startled rodent.

"Where were you?" James hissed as Peter sprinted up to them.

"McGonagall," Peter gasped, "Then fell on Snape, ran up here."

"Never mind," James replied, not bothering to sort out Peter's jumbled statement, "What house do you want Sirius?"

"Anything but Slytherin," Sirius replied, "how about you?"

"Pretty much the same," James thought for a second, "I think I want Gryffindor though."

"I'm hoping for Gryffindor or Ravenclaw," Remus joined in the conversation, "I'd leave if I was put in Slytherin."

The other boys all agreed that if they were put in Slytherin they would leave the school by the next morning.

"I'll probably end up in Hufflepuff," Peter groaned, "Then Mum'll be disappointed 'cause I let down the family name of Pettigrew."

Up ahead of the boys, at the very front of the line of first-years, were Lily and Alice. Lily was staring in amazement at the ceiling which was bewitched to mirror the sky outside and Alice was scanning the tables, trying to figure out which belonged to each house.

"I'm positive that's the Slytherin table," Alice whispered to Lily, "That must be the Gryffindors. Over there is the Hufflepuff table and that leaves this one as the Ravenclaw table."

"It looks exactly like the sky," Lily whispered to Alice, "And all of the floating candles look amazing!"

"Students, may I have your attention please!" Professor McGonagall called from the dais where the staff table stood.

The hall instantly went silent as the students stopped talking. Every face in the place, with the possible exception of the Slytherins, turned to face Professor McGonagall expectantly. McGonagall had placed a four-legged stool in the center of the dais and an old, ratty looking hat sat on top of the stool.

"Thank you," Professor McGonagall continued, "Without further ado, I present to you the Hogwarts Sorting Hat!"

The hat on the stool started to move. A seam that resembled a mouth opened and the hat started to sing.

_From all of you,_

_This promising bunch,_

_Will come many kinds of people_

_It's impossible to tell,_

_What to expect,_

_But this I can tell you!_

_Among you lie_

_The lowest of the low_

_Traitors, and_

_Murderers_

_But you also hold,_

_The best of the best,_

_Aurors,_

_Unspeakables,_

_Professors, and_

_Ministry Officials_

_It is you, who will find,_

_That at a certain time_

_The Dark Lord shall be defeated_

_All you must do,_

_Is study and learn,_

_And do the absolutely,_

_Positively,_

_Best that you ca-a-a-a-a-a-a-an!_

And with that the hat fell silent. The Hall broke into wild applause and whistling was heard from several students. Others commented to their friends that the hat's singing got better every year.

"And now I will call you up in alphabetical order. When your name is called, come up here and sit on the stool. I will place the Sorting Hat on your head and it will do the rest."

The first-years looked around at each other, all asking the same questions with their eyes, 'what's it going to do?' Lily looked unconcerned and James simply stared at her in awe.

"Aren't you worried?" Alice hissed as the first name was called.

"Not really," Lily replied, "They won't hurt us, so I'm not worried."

"But," stammered Alice, "But what if you get put in Slytherin?"

Lily shrugged as if unconcerned and watched as Sirius Black was called up to be sorted. He was sorted into Gryffindor and he heaved a huge sigh of relief as he walked over to the madly cheering table. Several girls hugged him in 'the excitement of the moment.'

A few minutes later Lily's name was called and she walked up to the dais eagerly.

_Hmmm, _said the hat, the voice echoing inside Lily's head, _you are smart, loyal and brave, and you also have great ambition. You would fit well into any of the houses._

_**Then don't put me in Slytherin, **_Lily replied,**_ if I fit anywhere then don't put me there._**

_Are you absolutely sure? You would do well in Slytherin_

_**DON'T PUT ME IN SLYTHERIN!**_

_Very well, better be **GRYFFINDOR**!_

The last part was roared by the hat out to the entire school and Lily took the hat off and handed it to Professor McGonagall before hurrying over to the cheering table. Lily grinned at Alice reassuringly. Alice looked rather green but tried to smile back. Lily sat down near Sirius who hugged her and managed to get on her other side and away from the girls while doing so. He then spent the next few minutes trying to hide behind her. He dragged her down to the very end of the table and ran around to the other side.

"They won't stop hugging me!" Sirius hissed, "I tried pinching one, but she only giggled and said, 'Sirius, you're so feisty!' Hide me Evans!"

Lily laughed and tried to calm the frazzled Sirius as Remus Lupin was sorted into Gryffindor as well. Remus sat next to Sirius and glanced at Lily for explanation as to why his friend was hyperventilating. Lily nodded to the girls who were still looking for Sirius and a look of comprehension dawned on Remus' face. The two turned away from Sirius to watch the rest of the Sorting. Frank Longbottom had been sorted into Gryffindor as well and he sat beside Remus.

"Pettigrew, Peter!"

"GRYFFINDOR!" The hat roared after about five minutes.

Peter came scurrying over to the Gryffindor table and sat on Sirius' other side. He looked relieved.

"I was beginning to wonder if it would ever sort me!" He squeaked.

"Potter, James!"

The hat sat on James' head for barely half a minute before "GRYFFINDOR!" rang through the hall. The Gryffindor students cheered wildly and James slipped into the seat next to Lily.

"All right, Evans?" Potter asked.

"I'm perfectly fine, but I don't think poor Black over there will ever be the same," Lily replied as she nodded to the still panicked looking Sirius who had just noticed the girls inching closer.

James laughed and Alice slipped into the seat beside Lily and across from Frank. Lily hugged her friend and watched the rest of the Sorting silently. Marlene McKinnon, Emmeline Vance and Dorcas Meadows were all sorted into Gryffindor as well. Thankfully Severus Snape was sorted into Slytherin, where Lily had been fairly sure he'd end up all along.

"And that concludes our sorting," Professor McGonagall announced as a very unpleasant looking man took the hat and stool off of the dais.

Then an old, wise looking man stood up. Lily looked him over carefully. He wore a deep purple robe embroidered with silver stars and moons and a matching hat. His hair and beard were waist length and his nose was long and crooked. He surveyed the students over his half moon spectacles.

"Students and teachers," the curious old man started, "For those of you who do not know, I am Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster of this school. Now, there is a time and place for everything. Now would be a great time and place for a speech, but I, for one, am hungry."

At this statement the Hall was filled with choruses of 'hear, hear' and 'cheers'.

"So, after warning you that you shouldn't venture into the Forbidden Forest, due to the fact that it is, in fact, still forbidden, and introducing you quickly to our new Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher, Professor Amelia Knightstown," here Dumbledore paused while the clapping died down, "I say the three best words anyone can say when you are hungry enough to eat a dragon. 'Let us feast'!"

Dumbledore waved his arms and the shiny gold plates instantly filled with food and the goblets with pumpkin juice. The students eagerly dug in. After everyone had eaten absolutely as much dinner as they could, the food disappeared and was replaced with dessert items. Lily helped herself to some cake and listened to the others talk about their families.

"My parents are both magical," Marlene McKinnon was saying, "I think my name has been down for Hogwarts since I was born. And I've known James for ages."

"Mum was a witch, but she didn't tell dad that until after they were married. She waited until she was in labor with me to tell him. She was like, 'no, honey, we're going to St. Mungo's to have the baby delivered'. He wasn't too thrilled at first but now he's more excited than I am," Dorcas Meadows told her story.

"What about you Lily?" Emmeline Vance asked.

"I'm Muggle born," Lily said, "It was a shock when we found out. It wasn't totally an unthought-of idea, I mean I had been doing strange things my entire life, but it was still a shock. I think my sister's dead set on coming here next year."

"I thought you said she thinks you're a freak," Alice said, confused.

"That's just because she's jealous. I can always tell with Petunia," Lily replied, "When she means 'you're a freak' her eyes really show it."

Everyone laughed as Lily did an imitation of Petunia's eyes bugging out. James started choking on a hunk of cake and Lily hammered him on the back.

"If you wouldn't eat so fast you wouldn't have that problem," Lily commented, "And I think that Black just shouldn't eat in public. That's disgusting."

Marlene eyed Sirius with obvious disgust at his eating habits. He was shoveling food into his mouth as if he had just come out of a seventeen year famine. James laughed again as Sirius missed his mouth and food spilled down the front of his robes.

"What about your family, James?" Alice asked, "I know your parents are Aurors and all, but you have to have a couple strange family members."

"Other than him you mean," Lily added teasingly.

James grabbed his heart dramatically, "Ouch, that hurt Evans. But you **_are_** right. My family has more nuts in it than Sirius's does, no offence or anything."

"None taken, I even admit they're all nuts," Sirius replied, somehow managing to talk perfectly clearly even though his mouth was still stuffed with food.

"I have this uncle who thinks he's the Minister of Magic and that the coat rack in our foyer is his deceased wife, Maggie. He just stands there and pleads with her to come back home whenever he visits. It's actually quite sad.

"My dead aunt, Maggie, was even stranger. She'd always make predictions about my death. It really freaked me out when I was little but then I got used to it. Once she told me that I'd die trying to protect my wife and son from Voldemort. She went on and on and on about it until finally she went silent for a minute before predicting her own death perfectly. She had it down to the very second.

"Their son, Igor, is a real nutcase if I've ever seen one. He pretends to be a hunchback and sits out on the porch of his dad's house trying to scare the kids in the neighborhood. One time he tried to chuck me at a squirrel that was scampering across 'his yard'. I broke my wrist on the landing, but other than that it wasn't so bad.

"Then there's mum's side of the family," James was about to keep on going and going when Lily did the unthinkable.

Lily Evans leaned in and kissed James Potter. And, from that moment on, James Potter was madly in love with Lily Evans. Just like that; sure he had liked her since he had first set eyes on her, but now he was absolutely, positively, deeply and madly in love with Lily Marie Evans. And Lily Marie Evans was in love with James Orion Potter too, although she wouldn't admit it, not even to herself.

Lily broke away quickly and James just stared at her in astonishment. Everyone went quiet.

"Why'd you do that?" Sirius asked slowly.

"It was the only way I could think of to shut him up," Lily answered, shrugging as she went back to eating her cake.

"Evans," James asked softly, "Will you go out with me?"

"I'd rather curl-up in the corner and die," Lily replied.

James looked slightly upset for a moment and then shrugged and grabbed another piece of cake and started to eat. Lily rolled her eyes and turned to talk to Alice, who was playing with the food on her plate nervously. Lily looked at Alice and realized that Alice was blushing. She thought for a second and then something dawned on her.

"Alice," Lily hissed, "Do you like Frank Longbottom?"

"Oh, yes," Alice hissed back, "Am I that obvious?"

"No," Lily replied absently, "No you're not."

Soon the feast was over and the students were instructed to follow the Prefects, or in the case of Gryffindor and Ravenclaw the Head Boy and Girl, to their respective Common Rooms. The first-year Gryffindors all got up and followed Andrew Weasley to up many flights of stairs and to a portrait of a fat lady.

"Merlin's Beard," Andrew Weasley said, loudly and clearly and the portrait swung open.

"Everyone come in!" He called and climbed through the hole and into what Lily assumed was the Gryffindor Common Room.

Lily got to the Portrait Hole and boosted Alice up because she couldn't manage to scramble through. James was all set to help Lily up but she climbed through on her own just to show him that she could. Then she followed Alice to the couches in front of the fire and the two friends collapsed on top of one.

"Okay guys, listen up. They guys dormitories are up the stairs on the right and the girls the same on the left. Don't stay up too late, classes start tomorrow. Good night," Andrew Weasley announced before going up to his dormitory, "and the password into the Common Room is 'Merlin's Beard'."

"Who thought of that one?" James asked as he flopped down on one of the chairs on the other side of the Common Room from Lily and Alice, "You'd think it was obvious."

"No," Sirius said, "I would have gone with 'password'."

"That," Remus replied, raising his eyebrows, "Is why you'll never be Head Boy or a Prefect."

"So, should we plan our welcome prank now or just spontaneously in the morning?" James asked his friends.

"Now!" Peter exclaimed, jumping up and down.

Lily snorted in laughter from across the room and called, "Don't wet yourself!"

Peter turned very red and stopped bouncing as the others laughed. Lily and Alice got up from the couch and slowly walked up the stairs to their dormitory.

"Lily?" James called.

"NO!" Lily shouted back.

"Can't blame a guy for trying," James muttered.

"Yes, you can!" Lily bellowed.

"Tough break mate," Sirius said, "Let's get plotting!"

And so the four friends started to plan their welcome to Hogwarts prank. Well, more James and Sirius planned, Remus said that was far to elaborate for their magical skill and Peter ooh-ed and ah-ed at everything that was said.

Meanwhile, up in the girls' dorms, Lily and Alice were making the list that would change history. Okay, it probably wouldn't, but one can't help exaggerating.

"Lily, what would James have to do to get you to go out with him?" Alice asked conversationally as they got into their pajamas.

"Um, get his head shrunk," Lily replied, "Honestly, I don't know how he can walk properly with that inflated ego of his. You'd think he'd topple over from the weight."

"Well, I'll make a deal with you," Alice suggested, "A sort of bet, if you will."

Lily raised her eyebrows to show that she was listening.

"You make a list of all the things that James would have to change in order for you to go out with him. If he successfully changes each and every quality then you have to go on one date with him."

"Only on one condition," Lily said seriously, "I can add any changes at any time I want to with your permission. Deal?"

"Deal," Alice replied and they two girls shook hands on it.

"So," Lily started as she pulled quill and parchment out of her trunk, "This is the start of the list:

* * *

**Lily Evans's impossibly long list of changes James Potter would have to go through in order for Lily Evans to date him**

**(More commonly referred to as 'Lily's list')**

_Lose the glasses, they make him look dumber than he already does_

_Make a top grade in the class_

_Talk about something other than Quidditch_

_Actually grow taller than Lily_

_And, most importantly, stop being a FILTY, IRROGANT, IMPOSSIBLE, ANNOYING, FILTHY, ROTTEN, TOERAG and DEFLATE HIS GALATIC SIZED EGO_

_I, Lily Evans, claim the right to adapt any of the changes on **Lily Evans's impossibly long list of changes James Potter would have to go through in order for Lily Evans to date him** at any time or to add to the list at any time with the approval of my best friend, Alice Prewett._

_

* * *

_

"That last one will always be the last one on the list," Lily explained as she enchanted the paper to check itself off automatically.

"Pin it up right here by the bed Lily," Alice suggested as the two girls surveyed the list, "Now I'll be able to see when things get checked off of it."

"Who's to say anything will actually get checked off?" Lily teased.

"I'd say it's inevitable," Alice replied sleepily, "Night Lily."

"Night Alice," Lily replied.

Lily Evans laid awake thinking about her day, James Potter, and how much he frustrated her until she finally fell asleep.

* * *

**_hey, yeah  
will I close my eyes  
will I hold my breath  
will I wanna cry  
will our souls connect  
I've been thinkin' about it when I go to bed at night, _**

**_night I wonder, _**

**_wonder will you hold my hand, will you speak of love  
will the stars be shining in the skies above  
will it be all that I've been dreaming of  
For so long  
Holding on _**

our first kiss won't be the last our love's to deep to end that fast  
and good things come to those who have wait  
I believe it's only time  
that keeps us from the thing divine  
and when it's here you know I'm gonna say  
lay it on my lips

will it taste like candy will it be that sweet  
will our hearts be racing to a heavenly beat  
will the moment sweep me off my feet  
and draw me under, under  
will I tremble , tremble will I beg for more  
will it be like anything I've never felt before  
will we be down for a little more  
one thing I, I know for sure

**_our first kiss won't be the last our loves to deep to end that fast  
and good things come to those who have to wait  
I believe it's only time  
that keeps us from the thing divine  
and when its here you know I'm gonna say  
lay it on my lips  
our first kiss won't be the last our love's to deep to end that fast  
and good things come to those who have to wait  
I believe it's only time  
that keeps us from the thing divine  
and when it's here you know I'm gonna say  
lay it on my lips _**

I can picture it all inside my head just how it's going to be, but a girl can  
only dream so much now she wants to make it real, make it real

break it down

our first kiss won't be the last our loves to deep to end that fast  
and good things come to those who have to wait (wait for me)  
I believe it's only time  
that keeps us from the thing divine  
and when its here you know I'm gonna say (you know I'm gonna say)  
our first kiss won't be the last our loves to deep to end that fast  
and good things come to those who have to wait  
I believe it's only time  
that keeps us from the thing divine  
and when its here you know I'm gonna say (gonna say now)  
ooh!  
our first kiss won't be the last our loves to deep to end that fast  
and good things come to those who have to wait  
I believe it's only time  
that keeps us from the thing divine  
and when its here you know I'm gonna say  
lay it on my lips

**_(KACI's Our First Kiss)_ **

_

* * *

_

AN/ Okay guys, what did you think? There's going to be a song at the end of every chapter that sort of sums up the most important things. Well, that's the plan anyways. I hope you liked it! And please tell me if you think the chapter is too long, because I can divide the later ones up into smaller chunks if you'd like!

Love From,

MotherCrumpet

P.S. Did you think that Lily is too much of a Mary-Sue? If you do then be sure to tell me so I can fix it! Oh, and also let me know if it seems too cliche! Or if anything seems wrong really...

PLEASE CLICK THE BLUISH-GRAY BUTTON ANDREVIEW!


	2. Chapter 2: To Survive the First Year

**AN/ Hey guys, sorry about the typos in the last chapter and everything. Here's part one of _To Survive the First Year_**

**_Dedicated to xtotallyatpeacex_, _thanks a ton for the extremely helpful review!_**

**ENJOY!**

* * *

**2. To Survive the First Year (part 1)**

Lily rolled out of bed the next morning and stumbled into the bathroom sleepily to take her morning shower. She exited the bathroom 10 minutes later, fully showered and dressed, to find Alice sitting on the bed and pulling her shoe on.

"Lily," Alice exclaimed as she spotted her friend, "You have to let me try my curl-calming hair potion on you!"

"Fine," Lily sighed, "Does my hair need to be wet?"

"Yes," Alice replied excitedly, "leave it wet!"

Lily sighed again and sat down at one of the five vanities in the dormitory. She brushed her hair while Alice finished putting on her shoes and got the potion from her trunk.

"All I have to do," Explained Alice, "is put this in your hair and then you can dry it magically or let it dry naturally. And suddenly you have beautiful, calm curls!"

Lily dried her hair magically and turned to glance in the mirror, thinking that Alice sounded rather like a TV commercial. Her normally unmanageable hair was in neat waves that framed her face beautifully.

"Alice?"

"You don't like it?"

"Where can I get some of that?"

Alice laughed, "I've got plenty for both of us. You only need to apply it once a week."

Lily glanced in the mirror to make sure that she wasn't forgetting anything and grabbed her bag before linking arms with Alice and going downstairs.

"Oy, Evans!" someone called from the other side of the Common Room, "Looking nice this morning."

"And you, Potter, are looking as dumb as ever," Lily retorted as she left the Common Room.

"And no, I'd rather kiss Nearly Headless Nick than go out with you!" Lily called back as James opened his mouth.

"It's your loss Evans!" James shouted after her, looking a little put out.

Lily and Alice laughed as they walked down to breakfast.

"How did you know what he was going to ask?" Alice asked Lily.

"Just a lucky guess," Lily replied, "I think I should start making up comebacks for him though. You know, keep fresh material and everything. You can only use the same comeback so many times you know?"

Alice laughed and the two walked happily into breakfast and sat right in the middle of some second-year boys who were very interested in the two pretty first-year girls.

"Miss Evans?"

"Yes Professor?" Lily asked as she turned around in her seat to face Professor McGonagall.

"Here is your schedule," the stern Professor handed her a piece of parchment, "And I would like to tell you that I took the liberty of telling Professor Flitwick about your leadership and proficient use of Alohomora last night. He was very impressed."

"Thank you Professor," Lily replied, beaming shyly, "but you needn't have done that."

"I know," Professor McGonagall replied before handing Alice her schedule and continuing down the table of Gryffindor students.

"It looks like we've got Charms first and then Double Potions. Then it looks like lunch, Transfiguration and finishing the day with Defense Against the Dark Arts," Alice commented as she looked at her schedule.

"Darn, we've got Double Potions with the Slytherins," Lily announced, rather disappointed that they didn't have History of Magic until tomorrow. She was interested in the history of the society she had just entered.

"We've got flying lessons tomorrow," Alice said, pointing to Lily's schedule, "unfortunately it's with the Slytherins too."

"At least we've got Herbology with the Hufflepuffs instead of Slytherin," Lily was always the optimist.

"Argh, tomorrow's going to be awful!" Sirius Black bellowed rather dramatically from somewhere down the table.

"I know," James replied just as loudly, "We've got flying, which wouldn't be bad except it's with the Slytherins, and we've got History of Magic, Herbology, and Astronomy!"

"I'll hit you with my bag if you'll hit me with yours," Sirius offered, "Make sure you hit hard enough to knock me out for a couple of days!"

"Oh, come on," Remus Lupin interjected, "It won't be that bad."

"Oh yes it will!" James and Sirius bellowed together.

"At least we won't get homework for at least two days," Peter squeaked, "They wouldn't give us homework on our first day!"

But Peter was sorely wrong on this point. The first-years received a small amount of homework from each of their teachers that first day and a rather long essay was to be written for Defense Against the Dark Arts by a week from Friday.

The first day at school was full of housekeeping things such as what name students go by and that sort of thing. Then they went over the proper procedures for wand use and spell casting as well as anything specific to the class such as the proper use of telescopes in Astronomy or the use of fire in Potions. All in all the first-year Gryffindors were glad when the final lesson of their second day came around, Flying.

"I'd never even thought of flying on a broom," Lily said worriedly, "I mean I've been in a plane, but on a broom!"

"A plane, is that those Muggle sort of metal birds?" Alice asked.

"Yes, well, sort of," Lily replied, attempting to explain the concept of a plane to Alice, "…so they're not really birds, exactly."

"Oh," said a very confused Alice who had stopped listening to Lily and started staring at Frank Longbottom.

"Class, welcome to your first flying lesson! I am Madame Hooch, newly retired Chaser for the Holyhead Harpies and the new flying instructor here at Hogwarts. I will referee all of the Quidditch games and I will do so **_fairly_**." Madame Hooch said, looking pointedly at the Slytherins. "Now, everyone stand next to a broom and shout 'up!'"

Lily looked at the broom skeptically and shouted, 'up' along with the rest of the class. Then she glanced around to see if anyone else's broom had started to hover in the air. Both James Potter and Sirius Black were standing next to a hovering broom with identical self-satisfied smirks on their faces. James winked at Lily; Lily let out a slight groan and ignored them completely.

"That's alright, try it again," Madam Hooch instructed, "You've got plenty of time. There's no hurry. Nice work to those of you who succeeded in getting your brooms up."

It was a few minutes longer until all of the brooms were floating in the air. One unfortunate Slytherin had gotten smacked in the head when his broom went shooting up. This, however, only brightened the mood of most of the Gryffindors.

"Okay, I want you to mount your brooms. Don't kick off until I get to three. When you kick off I want you to rise in the air for about ten feet and then steer your broom back down. One, two, three!"

On three Lily kicked off the ground and rose quickly into the air before landing easily back on the ground. Severus Snape was not quite so lucky. His broom rose very rapidly into the air and would not stop rising. A look of fear crossed his face as he stared at the ground far below. He started to yell in panic.

"Potter," Madam Hooch called, "You can fly, go and get him down from there!"

"My pleasure," James replied smirking cruelly at the panicking Snape.

Lily watched the scene play out in utter shock and horror. She knew that James was not going to be much help to Snape. In fact, he was probably going to do something quite the opposite.

James flew closer to Snape and started to talk to him in what Madam Hooch assumed was a calming voice because she called, "That's the way Potter!" to him encouragingly from the ground.

"The evil little Slytherin is scared? What would your mother say? Fear of heights isn't an admirable trait in Salazar Slytherin's house. You should have been placed in Hufflepuff instead," James taunted softly.

If anything Snape started panicking more instead of calming down. His flailing arms almost hit James several times but James managed to duck out of the way.

"Keep talking to him Potter," Madam Hooch instructed, "Tell him everything will be alright and just to steer the broom downwards."

Snape tried this, but in his panic the broom only started ascending again. He yelled bloody murder as James flew closer.

"Are you too stupid to land a broom? Or are your hands too greasy to grip the broom properly?" James taunted mercilessly.

"Potter, pull him onto your broom!" Madam Hooch bellowed commandingly, "Evans, Black, get on your brooms and help him!"

Lily immediately kicked off and flew, without thinking over to Potter.

"You idiot, you're going to get him killed!" Lily screeched, "Tell him what to do and stop taunting him!"

"Geez Evans, I wasn't going to hurt him," James said before muttering under his breath, "too badly."

"You prat!" Lily hissed, hearing James' remark, "Get him down right now or I'll never talk to you again!"

James went pale and turned to Snape, "Come on, get on my broom and I'll take you down."

"I'm not letting you help me, you'll kill me!" Snape snarled.

"Fine, I tried Evans," James said, not bothering to attempt to persuade Snape to let him help.

"If you don't trust him then will you trust me?" Lily asked, "I'll help you."

"I don't need help from a filthy Mudblood!" Snape growled.

"Fine," Lily replied calmly, "Then you'll have to stay up here all day. Potter lay off! Black, don't even try it!"

James and the newly arrived Sirius had both reacted violently at the word 'Mudblood'. James moved threateningly closer to Snape and Sirius pulled out his wand.

"APOLOGIZE!" James roared, "RIGHT NOW!"

"I don't want you making him apologize," Lily snapped, "Just go and land over there where I don't have to look at your face, you make me SICK!"

"W-what?" James stammered.

"I said you make me sick Potter. We've only been here a day and you strut around the place like you own it. You pick on any unfortunate person and hex whoever even seems like they might get in your way! It's disgusting!" Lily spat, "YOU MAKE ME SICK!"

"Tough break mate," Sirius said sympathetically.

"You're as bad as he is!" Lily exclaimed as she whirled on Sirius, "You fly up here pretending to be eager to help when all you want to do is chuck him off his broom!"

"Whoa, that's a little much," Sirius protested.

"Oh, save it for someone who cares!" Lily said as she smacked both Sirius and James across the face.

"Miss Evans, you have DETENTION!" Professor McGonagall's voice called from below, "Now the three of you get out of the way so that Madam Hooch can help Mr. Snape land properly!"

Lily landed her broom and stalked off from James and Sirius in a huff. They called after her but she ignored both of them and went to find Alice who looked rather shocked at the turn of events.

"Miss Evans, I will see you at 7:00 sharp outside the Head's Common Room, understood?" Professor McGonagall said sternly once Snape had been successfully grounded.

"Yes Professor," Lily replied, struggling to keep her voice under control, "I'll be there at 7."

"Good, I would dock points from Gryffindor, but I fear that you have no points to dock. Never, in all my years, have I seen such unruly behavior out of such a bright student," Professor McGonagall strode off, still muttering to herself about Lily's 'unruly behavior'.

"Evans," James called, "You didn't really mean what you said, did you?"

"Oh, contraire Potter, I meant every word of it." Lily replied icily, "Now, do us all a favor and crawl into a corner, curl up, and die!"

James looked shocked at this display of pure loathing coming from Lily. He turned to find Sirius in a fit of hysterical laughter.

"What was funny about that?" James demanded.

"She actually kept a straight face while she said it, and you bought every word!" Sirius replied, collapsing on the ground from laughter.

Lily looked at Sirius rolling on the ground like he was a rather disgusting fungus growing on her sandwich. He slowly caught on.

"You weren't kidding?"

Lily made a disgusted noise, grabbed her bag and Alice and stalked off.

"God, you make the girl get one detention and acts like a huge stick has been shoved up her butt," Sirius muttered.

James watched Lily go with a feeling of guilt weighing heavily on him. He turned to Remus who had just walked up, "You know what we can do to make this detention better for her, don't you?"

"Get her some pie!" Sirius shouted.

"Leave her to cool off and then apologize?" Remus asked.

"Buy her a nice stress ball?" Peter suggested meekly.

"No," replied James, "Get detention too. Then we'll have it with her."

"Won't she enjoy that," Remus' voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Yes she will," James assured him confidently, "because I'll be there!"

"That's what I'm afraid of," Remus muttered to himself as James walked away, off to History of Magic.

"This is the most boring class I've ever been in," James complained to Sirius.

"I know," Sirius replied, "even Remus and Evans seem to hate it."

James looked to see that both Remus and Lily were, in fact, joining the rest of the class in various points of catching up on their sleep. Peter was sitting in the front row and snoring loudly.

"It's a miracle he hasn't bored himself to death yet," James said, nodding to Professor Binns, the very old and wrinkled History of Magic Professor.

"He's too busy boring all the students to death," Sirius replied, "I bet he made a pact with an old buddy to see if you really could bore anyone to death."

"I bet you he wins."

"Probably, so what's the plan again?"

"What plan?"

"Do we have more than the one to get detention with Evans?"

"What about the plan?"

"What is it?"

"What do you mean?"

"What is the plan James?"

"Do we have a plan?"

"We don't have a plan?"

"No, I didn't think we did, unless you made one up?"

"Was that a question?"

"Was that an answer?"

"What are you talking about James?"

"What are **_you_** talking about Sirius?"

"Would you two shut up?" Remus hissed.

"Would you like us to?" James asked.

"YES!" Remus hissed.

"Are you going to be all mean about it?" Sirius turned to look out the window. He stared out at the giant squid for about a minute before turning to James again, "So, what's the plan?"

"What plan?" James asked.

"We've been over this!" Remus in a roaring whisper, if that's even possible, "He's talking about the plan to get detention tonight with Lily! Discuss it over lunch when we won't get detention for talking!"

"What is stuck up his butt?" Sirius mouthed to James.

"I think it's something quite large, don't you?" James mouthed back.

"Stop!" Remus hissed menacingly.

"We weren't talking!" James protested.

"You were mouthing loudly," Remus said, "It's quite as annoying as actually talking when one is trying to sleep and doesn't want detention!"

James and Sirius rolled their eyes and turned to look at Lily (James) and the giant squid (Sirius). They were both very glad when the bell rang and they could escape to lunch, after laughing at the half-crazed Peter who had just been woken out of a deep sleep by the bell.

"So, what's the plan?" Sirius asked as soon as they had gotten out of the classroom.

"Yes," Remus agreed, "Since it's so important that you had to discuss it in class, I want to hear about it too."

"Well," said James, "I haven't worked out all the details, but…"

It was nearing 7:00 that night when the boys put their plan into action. Sirius was hidden behind the grand staircase, Peter positioned down the hall behind a suit of armor, and Remus was standing like he was waiting for someone outside the Great Hall. James, however, was absolutely nowhere to be seen because he was hiding under his invisibility cloak.

Remus started to whistle a poplar song as Lily walked by on her way to detention. This was the signal for Sirius to lay low and not bother whoever was coming up the stairs and James to not charm the stairs yet. As soon as she had gone safely by, and given Remus a very suspicious look, Remus stopped whistling and started to cough violently.

At this moment Peter screamed a very girly sounding scream, Sirius and Remus disappeared from the Entrance Hall into the dungeons and James whipped off the invisibility cloak. He waited for the inevitable, the teachers to come running out of the Great Hall trying to find out who had screamed.

The first ones out were Professor McGonagall and, amazingly, due to his rather lacking height, Professor Flitwick. They both were about a fourth of the way up the stairs when Professor Dumbledore came out of the Hall, winked at James, and started up the stairs. James had the distinct impression that Dumbledore knew exactly what James was up to but waited until they had gotten three fourths of the way up before waving his wand and making the stairs turn into a slide.

All three let out cries of alarm, although Dumbledore's was very theatrical sounding, and slid down the stairs to land in a heap at the bottom. Professor McGonagall untangled herself and stood up immediately to figure out who had done that to the stairs. Professor Flitwick also jumped up immediately, although the effect was much less dramatic. Dumbledore, on the other hand, stood up slowly and majestically (if you know what I mean by someone standing up majestically) and dusted himself off slowly.

"Mr. Potter!" Professor McGonagall demanded, "Did you see who did that to the stairs?"

"N-no Professor," James stammered, trying to make his voice sound guilty, "I d-didn't see."

"Hmm," Professor McGonagall replied, "I think we found our culprit. Did you do that to the stairs Mr. Potter?"

"Don't be silly Minevra," Professor Flitwick squeaked, "That's far too advanced for Mr. Potter to have done on his second day."

"I wouldn't say that," Professor Dumbledore interjected calmly. "I think James is capable of a great many things that he hasn't shown us yet."

"You didn't answer my question. Did you or did you not turn the stairs into a slide!" Professor McGonagall demanded.

"I-I-I um, you see, I," James started.

"A simple 'yes' or 'no' will do, Mr. Potter."

"Yes, but not on purpose," James protested.

"I find that doubtful," Professor McGonagall replied sternly, "Come along, detention. I'm sure you and Miss Evans will both enjoy the other's company while you clean the Head Boy and Head Girl's Common Room."

"They get their own Common Room?" James gasped in disbelief, "is it bigger or smaller than the House Common Rooms."

"I'd say it's about comparable," Professor McGonagall replied, a little off-guard, "but that is beside the point. I'm sorry Albus, he won't do it again."

"Oh, I wouldn't guarantee that Minevera," Dumbledore replied, his eyes twinkling, "but it's alright. I haven't had a good slide in years. Maybe I'll make it a required class."

James laughed as he followed Professor McGonagall up the stairs, winking at Sirius and Remus as he passed, "I've got detention."

"James, James, James," Sirius scolded as he shook his head, "What am I going to do with you?"

Sirius, Remus and James all laughed and Peter slid, squealing happily, down the staircase. When he was halfway down the spell wore off and it turned back into a staircase. Peter's delighted squeals turned into sharp shrieks of pain as he attempted to stop his descent. Sirius fell on the floor in laughter and Remus tried to hide his amusement as Peter hit the floor of the Entrance Hall with a resounding thump.

"I'm going to have bruises for the rest of my life!" He squeaked.

James struggled to support his own weight (he was laughing so hard) as he followed McGonagall up the newly reformed staircase and down the hall to the Head Boy and Girl's Common Room. Lily stood waiting in the corridor and gave him a look that clearly said 'what in Bloody Hell are you doing here?'

"Mr. Potter will be joining you tonight in detention. I will give you your instructions and then you will be left alone to finish. I will come back in an hour to check your progress. You will clean this entire Common Room without magic. Please hand me your wands," Professor McGonagall held out her hand expectantly and both Lily and James handed over their wands reluctantly, "All right, I'm just going to seal the door and be off."

And with that Professor McGonagall sealed the entrance to the Head's Common Room and left without another word. After tugging on the door experimentally, James turned to Lily.

"I guess were stuck with each other," James said somewhat cheerily.

"That doesn't mean I have to talk to you or like it, Potter," Lily retorted angrily, "Why are you here?"

"I kind of turned the staircase into a slide while McGonagall, Flitwick and Dumbledore were trying to go up it."

"Argh!" Lily screamed in frustration as she grabbed one of the two brooms from the corner and started sweeping, "Are you going to help or are you just going to stand there?"

"Well, cleaning isn't really my thing, and you look so cute while you sweep," James replied, "It'd be a shame not to let you do something that I enjoy watching you do."

"You'd probably like to watch me take a shower too, but that's not going to happen!" Lily replied as she chucked the second broom at James and returned to her sweeping.

"Erm, Evans?"

"POTTER, STOP TALKING AND START SWEEPING!"

"Sorry," James muttered, "You'd think a person might like to know that these are rather expensive racing brooms, not ones that you sweep with."

"WHAT!"

"I said that these are rather-"

"I head you the first time," Lily snapped as she looked at the broom that she had just bent all the bristles out of place on while sweeping, "Will that do much damage?"

"Way to go, Evans, you just ruined the broom's balance!  
"Bloody Hell," Lily swore under her breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing," Lily replied snappishly, "Maybe they won't notice?"

"They'd have to be pretty dense not to notice that Evans."

"Give me the other broom!" Lily demanded.

"Why, so you can ruin it too?"

"GIVE ME THE BROOM POTTER!" Lily bellowed angrily, "OR I'LL MAKE YOU GIVE IT TO ME!"

"Geez, calm down Evans," James said as he handed Lily the second broom, "Here it is."

Lily seized the broom and found a closet in the small entryway. She yanked open the closet door and chucked the brooms in. Then she slammed the door only to open it again and pull out the cleaning supplies.

"Start sweeping Potter!" Lily commanded as she handed James the non-racing broom.

"'Start sweeping'," James mocked, "Geez, you sound just like my mother."

Lily made an angry noise and James decided that it was best not to pursue the subject so he cleaned silently until they were done. They finished twenty minutes before McGonagall was due to come back. James sprawled across the floor tiredly. Lily sat down as far away from him as possible.

"Evans?"

"What do you want Potter?"

"Why do you hate me?"

"Because you're a superficial, egotistical, imbecile, infuriating little brat," Lily replied.

"But you kissed me at the start of term feast." James pointed out.

"It was the only way to get you to shut up!" Lily protested rather surprised that James had understood what she had called him, "Now stop talking to me Potter!"

"There's only one way to shut me up Evans," James replied, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

"I think you're right," Lily replied as she crossed over to James and leaned down as if to kiss him.

But instead of kissing him like he thought she was going to she stomped down on his stomach rather forcefully causing him to double over in pain.

"And that's the least of the pain I could cause you," Lily said smoothly as the door to the Head's Common Room opened up and Professor McGonagall walked in.

James scrambled up off the floor, still wincing in pain and straightened up. He grinned half-heartedly at McGonagall who seemed oblivious to the fact that he was in pain.

"Well, you two did an acceptable job, you may leave," Professor McGonagall announced after inspecting the room for any sub-standard job.

"Acceptable?" James asked, "The whole room is sparkling!"

"Yes, the room may be sparkling, but I was hoping that you and Miss Evans would come to an agreement. You have done no such thing, good night, Mr. Potter, Miss Evans, unless you would like an extra detention."

James and Lily turned and hurried out of the Common Room and into the hall. Lily walked quickly away and back to Gryffindor Tower. James tried to keep up but gave up as soon as the pain settled in.

"Merlin, I'm going to have a foot shaped bruise for weeks!"

* * *

**AN/ and there you go! Okay, so what did you think? Hmm?**

**Yeah, so other than the first chapter there's only going to be a song summary for every whole YEAR, well, until later at least. Okay, so, yeah, I hope you enjoyed it! Please click the jolly blue button (it'd sound so much better if it was the jolly green button!) and reivew!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**

**P.S. I'm thinking of just beta-ing this story myself, what do you think? Am I doing a decent job, or should IgetMichelleto beta it?**

**Just for fun...**

**Who said this random quote?**

**_"A lie gets halfway around the world before the truthhas a chance to get its pants on."_**


	3. Chapter 3: To Survive the First Year 2

**AN/ This chapter is dedicated to _Snuffles101_ for giving me a nice review for both chapters! Now, don't get mad, I know a lot of you reviewed both chapters, but there are still a lot of chapters to come!**

**So, without further ado, I presentpart two of _To Survive the First Year_ (That's the chapter title guys!)**

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**3. To Survive the First Year (Part 2)**

"And then she practically sprinted off down the hallway," James finished telling the others why he had been in so much pain for the last few days.

James had waited for a few days before risking his pride and telling them about detention. Now that he had Sirius was laughing and Remus was looking slightly concerned. Peter just looked downright confused.

"Is it a bad bruise?" Remus asked, "Is it going away?"

"Its fine Remus," James assured, "it's going down in size and it doesn't hurt so much anymore."

Remus nodded but didn't look convinced. He glanced around the Common Room as nonchalantly as possible. He was disappointed when he didn't spot Alice; he had been hoping to talk to her and form some idea of how to get Lily to be friendlier towards James. So far he hadn't been able to find her when she was alone.

"Hey guys," Remus said, turning back to his friends, "I'm going to go and do some homework in the Library."

"Remus," Sirius replied, shaking his head in disbelief, "It's Saturday! You can't do homework on a Saturday!"

"Unlike you I want to be able to finish it all properly instead of trying to do it in the early hours of Monday morning."

Sirius sighed and gestured for Remus to go, shaking his head in disgust. James grew highly suspicious; Remus and James had both finished all of their homework last night in the library. James watched Remus walk out of the Common Room and then stood up.

"I'm going to go and find what we can do in this place on the weekend. There have to be billions of passages in this school for us to find."

Sirius was suddenly interested in what James was saying, "Any chance of finding the kitchens?"

"Are you always hungry?" James asked in awe, "We just ate breakfast 20 minutes ago!"

"Yeah, but 20 minutes is a long time," Sirius replied, "and you never know these days what might be your last meal!"

James shook his head, "I have to give in on that point Sirius. Are you coming Peter?"

"Sure," Peter squeaked, glad to have been invited to tag along with the more popular boys, "but I'm not hungry."

"Neither am I, but knowing where the kitchens are could come in handy someday," James replied as the three left the Common Room, "Sometime in the next seven years we're bound to be hungry when they aren't serving food in the Great Hall."

Sirius nodded his agreement, "See, James, I wasn't thinking only with my stomach. We're bound to find a useful time to know where the kitchens are!"

"Who do you think cooks in this place?" Peter asked, in awe of what cooking for all of Hogwarts and the staff entitled.

"I expect some famous cook does all the Hogwarts cooking!" Sirius exclaimed.

"I thought maybe it wasn't really food at all," Peter offered his own unique theory, happy that they seemed to listen to what he said.

"What do you mean not really food?" Sirius asked, coming to a full halt and turning around to face Peter. Peter just managed to stop just before running into Sirius.

"I mean maybe its pure magic or something," Peter stammered.

"Did you hear what he just said James?" Sirius roared in disbelief, "honestly, 'maybe its pure magic or something'. I know food when I eat it Peter!"

"Calm down Sirius," James said soothingly, "Peter was just joking, weren't you Peter?"

Peter started to shake his head 'no' and James kicked him roughly in the shin. Catching on to James's not so subtle hints, Peter started nodding enthusiastically, "Yes, it was just a joke!"

Sirius stared from James to Peter and back again. Then he let out a rather forced laugh and turned around, quickly forgetting about the little incident in his enthusiasm to find the kitchens.

"If I were a fruit, where would I live?" Sirius asked, oblivious to the fact that he had just caused James to double over in laughter and that there were many other Hogwarts students in the corridor, "Hmm, think like a fruit, be the fruit. I AM A FRUIT!"

Sirius roared the last sentence and received some very strange looks from the other students as it echoed throughout the corridor. James fell on the floor, no longer able to support his own weight due to his hysterical laughter. He received a few strange looks as well from the passing student population, who quickly backed away leaving the three friends in the corridor alone.

Sirius started muttering to himself again, "Hmm, **think** like the fruit, think **_like_** the fruit, **act** like the fruit, **_BE_** the fruit!"

Peter eyed the hysterical James worriedly, not understanding why he was laughing so hard. Then he jumped in fright as Sirius whirled to face him.

"Peter, if you were a fruit, where would you be?"

"Erm, the kitchen?" Peter stammered, "I dunno."

"THE KITCHEN!" Sirius roared, "THAT'S IT!"

Sirius ran off down the hall excitedly, completely forgetting that they had been looking for the kitchens in the first place. He ran smack into a wall where the corridor turned and fell flat onto his back. After a few minutes he sat up slowly. He looked around as if in a daze and then stood up and came back to where James, who had just recovered from the 'fruit' remarks, was lying in fresh fits of laughter from Sirius running head on into a wall.

"James?" Sirius asked as he stood above James and looked down at him.

"Yes," James managed to gasp out.

"Do you know where the kitchens are?"

James barely managed to shake his head 'no' before breaking out into laughter again. Sirius eyed him as if he needed mental help.

"James, are you okay?" Peter asked worriedly as James managed to control his laughing.

"Sirius, you really need to think about what you're saying!" James laughed, "You just shouted 'I AM A FRUIT' at the top of your lungs in front of several dozen people."

Sirius's face went pale as he thought about what the other students had probably taken that statement to mean.

"You may want some glasses too," Remus added, appearing out of nowhere, "I swear you bounced 20 feet backwards off that wall."

The two boys laughed as Sirius stood looking rather pale and Peter looking rather confused.

"What if some hot girl heard me and she thinks I really am a fruit?" Sirius finally asked, coming out of his daze.

"Then we'll tell her you're not a fruit, you're just chronically insane." James assured soothingly. Remus laughed and Sirius looked genuinely glad that James would do such a 'kind thing' for him.

"Thanks mate, 'chronically insane'? I'll have to remember that one!" Sirius exclaimed, not bothering to ask what 'chronically insane' meant as he turned and practically skipped down the hall, "Now James, if you were a fruit, where would you be?"

"I'd be in the broom cupboard, snoging another fruit of course!"

* * *

"Miss Evans, can you answer my question?" Professor Flitwick asked as he surveyed his brightest student several weeks after school had started.

Lily sighed and answered the question, "The proper thing to do would be to cast a simple charm which builds a fire that gives off heat but won't be put out by rain."

"That is correct, very good Miss Evans!" Professor Flitwick said happily.

Lily had not sighed because she hadn't wanted to answer the question, she had sighed because in this class James Potter sat right across the aisle from her and made it a habit to make fun of her whenever she answered a question. And, sure enough, James was probably making some sort of funny comment, because Sirius was trying to hold in his snorts of laughter.

"Honestly, she's already so bored here at school. She answered that last question as if she was only doing it as a favor to Flitwick," James's voice drifted over to where Lily was sitting; she was fairly sure that he had made sure that she heard him, "And she calls **_me_** conceited."

Lily ignored James's remark, even though she would have dearly loved to retort. But she knew that was exactly what he wanted her to do, so she kept her mouth shut. She wasn't about to let James Potter ruin her spirits because Halloween was tomorrow. It also fell on a Friday, which meant that they were going to have all weekend after the feast just to lounge about. This little fact made Lily Evans a very happy Gryffindor.

"Professor, I know the answer!" James called out, waving his hand in the air and acting like a know-it-all school girl, which was his very inaccurate impression of Lily, "Pick me!"

"Yes, Mr. Potter?" Professor Flitwick asked in his squeaky voice, nearly falling backwards off his pile of books behind the podium at James's enthusiasm, "Do you know what the proper thing to do is when your friend is overdosed on Solemn Solution?"

"You overdose them on a Cheering Charm of course," James replied, leaning back in his seat as the class laughed at his joke.

"That's not quite right Mr. Potter, although it was a nice guess. Miss Evans, do you know?"

Lily rolled her eyes at James's antics and thought for a second, "You'd want to dilute the Solemn Solution by conjuring up some water and making them drink it."

"Very good Miss Evans!" Professor Flitwick squeaked as the bell rang, "Don't forget that your essay on portable everlasting fires is due next Monday!"

The class gathered their things and hurried out of the last class of the day excitedly. The excitement about the end of the day was higher than usual due to tomorrow's holiday and the fact that students would only attend half of their tomorrow's normal classes. Lily and Alice dodged the high spirited trouble making as much as possible. Unfortunately they were unable to avoid James Potter and Sirius Black taunting Severus Snape, the only trouble making that would seriously bother Lily.

"Are you okay Snivellus?" James asked after tripping Snape in the hallway and sending the few items that had not gone flying from Snape's arms shooting down the corridor.

Severus Snape scrambled to collect his items from the floor as a crowd gathered around the known enemies. James and Sirius were top of the class, along with Lily and Remus, and Snape was pretty smart himself, so their skirmishes were always entertaining to watch. Snape grabbed his last item and tried to break through the circle but the students wouldn't part to let him through. He wasn't going to be able to run from James and Sirius this time.

"Be careful or you might get your robes greasy," Sirius called to the assembled students as Snape tried once again in vain to break through the ring of observers.

"Auguamenti," James said, somewhat lazily, and water spurted out of the end of his wand to hit Snape full in the chest.

The force of the water knocked Snape completely over backwards, causing him to drop all his things again. It was at this moment that Lily and Alice showed up to find Snape sprawled helplessly on his back and Sirius pointing his wand at Snape's throat.

Lily decided that she should speak up for Snape, since nobody else seemed bothered to, not even the Prefects spattered throughout the crowd. After asking people to move, Lily resorted to smacking them with her bag and causing them to duck out of the way. She finally managed to break her way through to where James and Sirius were standing with their backs to her. She swung her bag around and it connected with both of their skulls with a resounding THUNK. Snape wasted no time thanking Lily, and instead just ran off without so much as a nod of thanks or even acknowledgement. However, the crowd didn't disperse because Lily and James were as known to be as good a source of entertainment as James, Sirius and Snape.

"Ouch, what was that for Evans?" James asked, rubbing his sore head.

"What do you think it was for Potter?" Lily replied, "Why do you have to be such an insufferable prat?"

"Ouch, that hurt worse than my head does Evans," James put on an injured face, "How about you go out with me as an apology?"

"Potter," Lily shook her head in disbelief, "I've just hit you in the back of the head with my bag and called you an insufferable prat; do you really think I'm going to jump at the chance to date you?"

"You can't blame a guy for asking," James replied, shrugging, "So is that an 'I'll think about it' then?"

"I'll consider it," Lily replied causing James's eyebrows to shoot up in shock, "When you stop being disgusting to even look at."

"James isn't disgusting to look at!" Sirius protested, causing the crowd around him to start laughing, "He's actually quite nicer to look at then you with your shiny hair and your unique eyes."

"Sirius, I thought we discussed your need to think before talking," James shot Sirius a look as the crowd laughed.

"What?" Sirius looked confused for a second before a look of comprehension passed across his face, "I did it again, didn't I?"

"Yes, you did," James replied, sympathetically, "Just try to work on it."

"AHEM," Lily cleared her throat, quite upset about being ignored, "I'm going to dinner."

"Fine Evans, it's not like you need my permission to go and eat. In fact, I much prefer that you do go and eat; I like my girlfriends to be pleasingly plump."

At this statement from James, which was meant in a joking manner, Lily pulled her arm back and smacked James across the face, hard.

"MISS EVANS!" Professor McGonagall's voice called through the corridor and the observing students instantly dispersed to go off to dinner, "What are you thinking?"

"Please, Professor, James Potter provoked her," Alice said, rather bravely, as she fought the sea of students who were eager to leave the scene.

"Is this true Mr. Potter?" Professor McGonagall whirled to face James who was nursing his face, which now sported a large red mark across the left cheek.

"Yes Professor," James replied, "I was just joking, but apparently Evans doesn't know how to take a joke."

"I shouldn't need to know how to take a joke like **_that_** from you or anyone else Potter!" Lily exclaimed, "It was way out of line!"

"Miss Evans, please calm yourself or I will have to double your punishment." Professor McGonagall thought for a moment before deciding on the punishment, "I will take ten points from Gryffindor and you will both receive detentions to be served right after dinner. I'm going to trust that this will never happen again, or else I'm going to have to take up your lack of civility with the headmaster."

And with that Professor McGonagall turned and walked off, leaving Lily looking like she wanted to strangle someone, and James still nursing his sore face.

"Potter, if you don't leave me alone we're going to end up in the Headmaster's office!" Lily exclaimed.

"And there's nobody I'd rather take a trip to Dumbledore's office with than you Evans," James replied cheekily.

Lily raised her hand as if to slap him and then thought better of it and let out a scream of frustration before turning and stalking off down the hallway.

"I think she's starting to like me," James commented as Alice hurried to catch up to the irate Lily.

"Yeah, I reckon she probably is," Peter replied, slightly jealously, "All the girls fawn over you and Sirius."

Remus snorted and then said sarcastically, "And when you two get married you'll be the parents of the most famous boy in wizarding history."

"Yeah, you should start planning the wedding, it's only a matter of time before you two are engaged," Sirius added, laughing.

"Oh, stuff it!" James said rather irritably.

"Can I come to the wedding?" Peter asked excitedly, not catching on to the sarcasm and joking.

"NO!" James roared, stomping off down the hallway and leaving a rather disappointed Peter behind as well as a hysteric Remus and Sirius.

"Was it something I said?" Peter asked meekly, his face falling at the thought of not attending James's wedding, "Should I go and apologize? I don't want to miss the wedding."

"Don't worry about it Peter," Remus said kindly as Sirius started laughing even harder, "When James gets married you'll be invited. And you didn't say anything wrong, James is just mad about Lily's not giving him the time of day."

"Oh," Peter nodded in understanding, which quickly turned to confusion, "So how is he going to marry her if he doesn't know what time the wedding is?"

Remus shook his head, "Just let it all go Peter, forget everything we've said about the wedding."

"But what kind of present should I get them?" Peter asked.

Remus threw his hands up, admitted defeat and left to go and eat dinner. Sirius followed him, laughing the whole way, and they left a very confused Peter standing in the hallway.

"Come back, I'm serious! Well, actually I'm Peter!" Peter called, running after his friends, "But honestly, what should I give them as a wedding present?"

* * *

**AN/ Hey guys! Things to look forward to:**

**Detention with Lily and James**

**More of the Marauders being, well, themselves**

**More stupid Sirius**

**Christmas for both Lily and James**

**the rest of first year**

**Keep in mind that that's not all in the next chapter. The next chapter will probably mostly be the first item on the list!**

**Reviews are much appreciated!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**

**RaNdOm QuOtE:**

**Last chapter was Winston Churchill, now guess this chapter's speaker! Or really what show it's from...**

**1st Character "That smugness of yours is really an attractive quality."**

**2nd Character "Thank you. It was either that or get my hair highlighted. Smugness is easier to maintain."**


	4. Chapter 4: To Survive the First Year 3

**AN/ This chapter dedicated to _Lianss_**

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**4. To Survive the First Year (part 3)**

"Stay away from me and this detention will fly by without incident, Potter," Lily warned that night after dinner as the two juvenile delinquents made their way to Professor McGonagall's office.

"Detention with you always 'flies by' Evans," James replied, regaining some of his normal arrogance and cheek.

"Shut it, Potter," Lily snapped as she rapped on the door to McGonagall's office rather forcefully.

"Come in!" Professor McGonagall's voice called through the doorway. "Ah, Miss Evans, Mr. Potter, you are right on time."

Lily and James entered the office and shut the door behind them. McGonagall gestured for them to take a seat and they both flung themselves in the chairs opposite her desk.

"So, I believe that you both know why I really wanted you here tonight."

Neither Lily nor James answered, but instead stared down at the floor (Lily) and out the window at the Quidditch Pitch (James).

"I didn't call you here because you necessarily did anything too disorderly or way out of line. You two seem to have a problem with getting along and if I have to act as a counselor for the two of you myself, then I will. We can meet every single night until you two start to get along, if that's what it takes. I don't ask that you start to be friends, or even like each other, but you will respect one another and show some civility in the hallways and classrooms. You will keep your fighting from becoming a regular public display. Do I make myself clear?" Professor McGonagall surveyed the two first-year Gryffindors seated in front of her sternly.

Lily and James both nodded. Lily was a little taken aback at McGonagall's stern reprimand but James barely blinked. James had learned to take all reprimanding in stride, as a trouble maker he really had to.

"Now that we've reached an understanding, I want both of you to let out anything that you want to let out, but I want you to do so in a civil manner. Please keep the yelling to a minimum and there is no need for physical aggression. Miss Evans, would you like to go first?"

Lily looked up in shock about being asked to let loose her conflicting emotions about James Potter so quickly. She thought for a second and, unable to sort out her emotions so quickly, simply said, "Potter can go first."

"All right, Mr. Potter, go right ahead," Professor McGonagall nodded to James.

James took a deep breath and started to speak, "I don't know what to say, Professor. I met Evans on the first day here. She was being harassed by Malfoy and Snape and she was trying to keep Gideon and Fabian's sister calm and to move. Prewett was rooted to the spot and wouldn't budge, almost like she had frozen up. I got close enough to hear what they were saying and...is this off the record Professor?"

"Yes Mr. Potter, this is off the record."

"Ah, so anyways, I got close enough to hear what they were saying and they called her a 'mudblood' and, I don't know, something inside me snapped. I thought I should help Evans and so I did and she seemed grateful, but she didn't really understand what I had done. By sticking up for her then I think I set her up for incidents in the future. So I wanted to stick around and help her deal with what I set her up for, but she doesn't want any help. She needs help, but she won't admit it and she definitely won't accept any help from me."

"That's not true!" Lily exclaimed, breaking into James's monologue. "I don't need any help!"

"Yes, you do!" James insisted. "You just won't admit it!"

"Mr. Potter, Miss Evans, what did I say about the yelling?" Professor McGonagall bellowed.

"Sorry, Professor," Lily and James chorused.

"Miss Evans, I believe it's your turn to talk," Professor McGonagall turned to Lily and nodded for her to start talking.

"Okay, ever since my sister was born I've been taking care of myself as much as I can. She's only a year and a half younger and I've been responsible for my actions and a lot of hers since I was about a year and a half old. I've learned over the years to take care of myself because you can't always depend on others. Sure, Malfoy and Snape were taunting me, but I had everything under control. I won't say I wasn't grateful for Potter's help, but I certainly didn't require it. I wasn't even listening to what they were saying very much; I was trying to get Alice, who had frozen up, to move. Potter didn't set me up for incidents in the future that I wouldn't have set myself up for eventually. He's just so arrogant that he'd like to think I need to rely on his help. If I needed help, I would ask for it. But I don't need help; I can handle anything that I get myself into."

"You can't handle it," James replied, slightly hurt at being called arrogant. "That day last week, they had you cornered, and you panicked. If I hadn't have helped you, then you would have gotten hurt!"

"No, I wouldn't have!" Lily exclaimed indignantly. "All you did was hex Snape, I could have talked my way out of there and he never would have endured the horror of being stripped down to his underwear in a crowded hallway!"

"He deserved that! And it let you get away!"

"I could have gotten away even without your help, Potter. And you know it, but you just don't want to admit it," Lily growled dangerously, her stereotypical red head temper flaring.

"You couldn't have! Face it, Evans, you need me, whether you admit or not!"

"Oh, go curl up in a corner and die, you bloody arrogant prat!"

"Language, Miss Evans!" Professor McGonagall protested but was cut off by James's retort.

"Oh, grow up, Evans; you just can't admit that you need someone's help! At least I'm not a bloody coward!"

"Watch it, Mr. Potter!" Professor McGonagall reprimanded but this time she was cut off by Lily's retort.

"I don't need anyone's help, and if I did, I certainly wouldn't need yours! I wouldn't ever want your help!"

By this time the nice, calm discussion had turned into a full on shouting match and Professor McGonagall had finally decided enough was enough.

"BE QUIET!" Professor McGonagall roared and it seemed as if the entire school had gone completely silent. "I am ashamed that two students, who I think would get along very nicely if they gave one another the chance, are fighting like young children! And within your own house too! You are probably two of the brightest students that Hogwarts has seen in decades, but you insist in acting like idiotic barbarians!

"Now, I have patiently tried to help you reach an understanding, but I cannot and will not spend anymore of my time acting as peacemaker for you two. You will have to keep the peace yourselves from now on, because neither of you is leaving this room until this is sufficiently solved. I shall check back every hour until you solve this problem or at least reach a common understanding."

And with that Professor McGonagall left the room and placed a rather complicated charm on the door so that the two couldn't get out. Lily and James were left all alone, and that was a very uncomfortable thing for both of them, especially since the other had just pointed out the largest insecurities of the other.

"So," Lily said finally.

"So," James replied.

"I think I have an idea."

"What's that?" James asked suspiciously, they were currently standing as far apart as possible in hopes of not smacking (Lily) and not being smacked (James).

"Well, in order for us to understand the other one fully we have to know the other's background. So, I'll tell you about my family and my life up to this point and you'll tell me about yours."

"Erm, do we have to?" James looked slightly uncomfortable at the thought.

"Do you have a better idea?" Lily asked rather snappishly, still struggling to keep her emotions from going haywire. She had just found a strange emotion when she looked into James Potter's hazel eyes; one that she was not sure that she liked or even knew for sure what it was.

James shook his head, "No, we'll go with your idea."

"Fine, I guess I'll go first." Lily took a deep breath and paused, as if collecting her thoughts before starting to speak.

"Okay, I was born to a young Muggle couple fresh out of college. They had been married for a year when I was born. Life wasn't easy those first few months; Mum worked part time and Dad worked full time, so Grandmother Evans took care of me.

"I was only a couple months old when Mum got pregnant again. My younger sister, Petunia, was born when I was only a year and a half old. Things were rocky and sometimes we didn't have much money for food, but we always managed.

"Everything was fine until my fourth birthday when Grandmother Evans died. Then Mum had to quit her part-time job to take care of Petunia and me, so we lost her meager income. I really didn't have a good, healthy diet except for at school and Mum was worried that I was so skinny. I got into a boarding school on a full scholarship at seven and went away to school, which eased the financial tension in my house.

"Mum's parents had disowned her when she married Dad but they decided that they didn't want to lose any possible relationship with their only granddaughters, so they made an effort to get to know us. They died less than a year later, but we had grown quite close in that short amount of time. All of their money had been left to our family and Dad received a huge promotion at the same time.

"Our family had always run solely on love, and Mum and Dad were happy that now we had the things that we had done without for so long. Petunia and I got into a really good private school.

"I was never liked at that bloody private school. The rich kids hated me because I was smart, the smart kids hated me because I had money, the dumb kids were just too stupid to think for themselves, but I was easily able to verbally duel with any bloody student in the school. I frequently was in battles of wits in the hallway with various students who had picked on someone.

"I was almost eleven, and Petunia was nine and a half, when the letter came from Hogwarts. We were home from school on summer vacation and sitting in the kitchen waiting for Mum to finish putting the groceries up so that we could go to the bookstore that our family had opened. All of a sudden an owl swooped through the window and Petunia started crying in fright and Mum was trying to comfort her and I was opening my letter with shaking hands and reading for the first time that I was a witch.

"At first I thought it was a joke because there were those rich kids in my private school that hated me. I guess I figured that I had it coming what with the 'accidents' in the science experiments where I 'accidentally' blew volcanoes up in their faces and the verbal battles in the hallways almost every day. But it turns out that it wasn't a joke. I was a witch, and I was going to Hogwarts.

"Petunia and I had been so close and I had never really done anything without her so she resents the fact that I came here without her. But really all her resentment is just jealousy and excitement, hoping that she'll get a letter from Hogwarts and come here next year. Our relationship deteriorated near the end of the summer and she's only gotten worse since school started, but I'm sure it will go back to normal once she gets her letter. So, here I am, sitting here and telling you about my life, because that's the only way we can think of to get out of this bloody office," Lily ended her monologue, having forgotten partway through that James was there and being startled when he coughed near the end.

"Um, wow, that's all I can think of to say," James replied quietly. "Does Prewett know all of that?"

Lily shook her head, "Nobody knows most of that but you Potter. And you can be sure that I wouldn't have told you if I hadn't needed to in order to get out of here."

A brief silence fell between the two. It was broken by the creaking sound of the door opening.

"You two aren't fighting; that's a start," Professor McGonagall commented dryly as she walked into the room. "Have you reached an understanding?"

"We're about halfway there, Professor," James replied, not taking his eyes off of Lily, whom he had grown to like even more in hearing about the troubles she had overcome in her early life. Lily just nodded in agreement, not taking her almond shaped green eyes off of James's hazel ones.

"Good, then I'll be back in another hour," Professor McGonagall said as she left the room and sealed it tightly again, looking relieved that they hadn't killed each other and seemed to be making progress.

"So, it's your turn, Potter. What made you become the arrogant prat standing before me today?" Lily asked, though in a teasing sort of way with a small smile barely noticeable on her pretty face.

"Hey now, we've made some progress, don't go jinxing it or anything," James warned, grinning at the smile she directed at him.

"Don't worry, I'm not about to jinx it," Lily replied, breaking eye contact and blushing slightly at his smile. "Go ahead, I'm listening, Potter."

"My parents are both top Aurors at the Ministry of Magic. Mum took a year off when I was born and then got back into the business, leaving me with Nanny to watch me. I was terrified, when I was little, my parents would be killed at work and that one day they would simply never come home. When they did come home, I wouldn't leave them alone until they left again. Vacations were rare since all of my grandparents had died before I was born so it was just Nanny and me most of the time.

"When I was older I was allowed to stay home during my parents' dinner parties that they threw several times a year. That's where I met Marlene McKinnon. Her parents brought her to the parties and I'd get her into a ton of trouble. We'd stay upstairs and watch people over the railings on the stairs. I'd drop water balloons and stink pellets onto the party below and we'd both get into trouble, although Mum and Dad were never really mad at us.

"When we were seven we were allowed to eat in the kitchen during the party. We went into the dining room to ask Mum if we could go upstairs. One of the servers didn't see Marlene and tripped over her, threw the hot Shepard's pie he was carrying across the room where it hit the Minister of Magic's wife in the face. She shrieked and waved her hands around, successfully knocking over her wine glass which spilled into the lap of the man next to her. He, in turn, jumped up in alarm and knocked his chair over which tripped another server. The second server fell over and grabbed onto the tablecloth in an effort to keep himself from falling and the entire table of food was pulled off of the table and onto the floor. Needless to say, Marlene and I were banned from my parents' dinner parties until we started Hogwarts, though my parents dearly love to tell that story.

"I always knew I was going to come to Hogwarts, my name had been down since I was born. I'm really not that arrogant, at least not on purpose. But, honestly, everyone in the wizarding world has heard of my parents, although I'd much rather that they hadn't and that my parents weren't in danger of being killed every second of the day. If you've grown up around people that all know exactly who you and your parents are, then you can't help but be slightly arrogant," James tried to explain his 'tad' bit of arrogance to Lily, who wasn't buying a word of this explanation.

"Potter, nobody has to be arrogant!" Lily exclaimed.

"Yes, some do for their own self-confidence," James pointed out. "But I'm not one of them. I'm arrogant sometimes because I'm proud of my family and what they do every single day to beat Voldemort, even if I would much rather that they work in a small office in Muggle Relations or something."

James looked upset, after all he was voicing for the first time his fear that his parents would get killed suddenly one day and that he would never see them again. Lily realized that James was a lot more complex than she gave him credit for.

"Potter, don't worry about your parents. They're amazingly talented and they use their talents for the right purpose. They're probably more worried about your safety then they are about their own. Since they're major targets for Voldemort, he wouldn't be likely to go after them directly. He'd probably go after the thing that meant the most to them and would be easier to get to and use that to try and swing them to his side. You're perfectly safe here at Hogwarts, so don't worry about him getting to you and don't worry too much about him getting your parents," Lily wasn't being particularly comforting, but that was exactly what James needed at the moment, he needed the logical reason for him not to be worried so much, not the pity that many would have given.

"Thanks, and Evans, I wouldn't worry about your sister either," James replied. "She'll probably get into Hogwarts and come to her senses."

"Thanks, Potter."

"No problem, Evans, what else am I good for?" James shrugged flippantly.

Lily wasn't sure whether she wanted to slap James or to hug him; however, she was spared the tough decision by Professor McGonagall walking through the door.

"Are we done? Have we reached an agreement?" Professor McGonagall asked, refusing to sound too hopeful.

"Yes, Professor," Lily replied. "I'm still not that fond of Potter, but I think we'll try to keep our arguments away from public viewing."

"Good, then you may go. But let me warn you that if you have any more spats like the one you had in the hallway today, then you will be straight back in here working through exactly what you did tonight. And if it happens again then I won't hesitate to get the Headmaster involved. Good night, Mr. Potter, Miss Evans," Professor McGonagall gestured for Lily and James to leave the office and they did so, each eager to get out of there.

"Well, that was an, erm, interesting detention," James commented to Lily.

"Yeah, but Potter?"

"Yes, Evans?"

"Let's never repeat any of what happened in there tonight. For all purposes, we were stuck cleaning the slime out of a dungeon that the third-years blew up a potion in."

"Deal," James replied and the two shook hands, promising never to mention what had happened in McGonagall's detention to anyone else as long as the other one lived.

"See you around, Potter."

"Yeah, see you, Evans," James replied, watching the girl he would love for the rest of his life walk off down the hallway.

Lily turned and grinned for a second and their eyes locked. Both felt an unmistakable feeling of warmth and comfort as well as a slight case of nerves right before Lily turned and broke the connection to continue down the hallway.

"Evans?" James called.

"What Potter?" Lily asked in a snappish voice, although her eyes were twinkling merrily and James knew instinctively that she was just teasing.

"Would you go out with me?"

"Don't push it, Potter," Lily replied, laughing. "I've only just decided that you may not be as arrogant of a prat as I thought."

James laughed and they walked off in opposite directions, each lost in thought. Lily was thinking about what she was going to tell Alice, while James was thinking about how beautiful Lily's laugh was, and he vowed to make Lily Evans laugh at least once a day.

* * *

**AN/ Okay, guess what guys? The fanfic author that this chapter is dedicated to wants to translate it inot Spanish! Isn't that exciting? I'm very excited! okay, anyways...**

**I hope you liked the chapter, yada yada yada. Hmm, Coming up in Lily's List**

**The Marauders get their name**

**Christmas**

**Lily/James have more witty conversations**

**Okay, so that's some of what you have to look forward to. Christmas will probably be in the next chapter, guess what James is getting for Christmas, (Hint, it has to do with the list)**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**

**RANDOM QUOTE**

**That quote was from HOUSE! Come onguys! I love that show! Anyways, here's this chapter's quote...**

**"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."**


	5. Chapter 5: To Survive the First Year 4

**AN/ I'm soooo sorry it's been so long guys! Enjoy!**

* * *

**5. To Survive the first Year (Part 4)**

"So, basically you're telling me that you didn't even notice that it got crossed off the list!" Alice exclaimed soon before Christmas Break.

"Erm, yes, I was just walking by and glanced over and it was crossed off!" Lily defended, "I honestly had completely forgotten about that list!"

"You are impossible!" Alice muttered as Marlene, Dorcas and Emmeline walked into the dorm room.

"What's all the excitement about?" Marlene asked, never one to miss a single detail.

"Lily's just realized something's been crossed off her list!" Alice exclaimed, "It's probably been crossed off for months!"

"Really?" The three other girls chorused as they jumped over Dorcas' bed to get to Lily's List which was posted on the wall.

"Which one got crossed off?" Emmeline called from her position behind the other two girls.

"Number 3: Talk about something other than Quidditch," Dorcas replied, "What did you talk about Lily?"

"Well, I suppose it must have been that night in detention," Lily said, thinking for a minute, "Yes, we talked about a lot of things actually."

"Spill," Alice commanded, "Or Mr. Fuzzy-Bear gets it!"

"Erm, Alice?"

"So you decided to crack Lily?"

"No, I just wanted to remind you that Mr. Fuzzy-Bear is yours, not mine."

"Oh, well, then, just spill," Alice said, as threateningly as possible while turning a very awkward shade of pink.

Lily just laughed, "Good night girls!"

"Night Lily," the others chorused as Lily pulled the curtains shut around her bed.

"So, what do you think they talked about Alice?" Dorcas asked excitedly.

"Yes, you know her the best!" Emmeline added.

"I suppose I do know her the best." Alice replied slowly.

"Well, I for one, don't care what James and Lily talked about," Marlene announced, "Or not while Lily's listening anyways."

"I'm not listening to anyone's conversation Marlene Abigail McKinnon!" Lily exclaimed indignantly, "How dare you suggest such a thing?"

The first-year girl's dorm erupted into bouts of laughter as all five of its occupants started laughing hysterically.

"I'm going to miss you girls so much!" Alice wailed as the Hogwarts Express started to slow for its arrival at King's Cross.

"Alice, we're going to see you in two weeks," Lily said soothingly.

"And I'll write to you," Marlene assured, "We all will."

"Do you promise?" Alice asked as the train came to a halt and passengers started to gather their things for their Christmas Holidays.

"Yes," the Gryffindor girls chorused.

"Okay, but I'm still going to miss you."

"But think," Lily commented at the girls clambered off the train, "You're going to get to see Gideon and Fabian and both of your parents. That's rare these days, and, with the world the way it is, you should be thankful for any time you get to spend with them."

"Such an uplifting speech Evans," James Potter said from behind Lily and Alice, "I'll have to keep it in mind and ponder its true meaning over the break."

"You do that Potter," Lily replied, rolling her eyes and giving Alice a quick hug before hurrying off to find her parents.

"Evans!" James called after Lily.

"What Potter?"

"Thanks!"

"Tell Nanny and your parents I say hi!" Lily called back, understanding that James was thanking her for helping Alice remember the importance of the holiday break in these troubled times.

"I'll do that! And give your sister a nice poke in the eye for me!" James added as an afterthought.

Lily saluted and turned away from Alice's questioning look to go and find her parents and Petunia.

"Lily, darling!" Mrs. Evans called as soon as Lily had exited platform nine and three quarters, "It's so good to see you again!"

"Mum, Dad, Petunia!" Lily exclaimed happily, 'accidentally' poking Petunia in the eye, "Oh, I'm sorry Petunia, I didn't mean to poke you!"

"Well then watch where you put you fingers!" Petunia exclaimed over a snort of laughter from someone behind her.

Lily saluted to James again as she walked out of the station with her family. He grinned and saluted back, receiving a strange look from Sirius and Peter, who were trying to talk to him. Remus just nodded a polite goodbye to Lily.

_Poor Remus is looking a little sick again. I swear that boy get sick at least once a month. _Lily thought to herself, _and if he's not sick then his mother or father is and he has to go take care of them or something!_

But all thoughts of Remus were quickly pushed from Lily's mind as she climbed into the family's car and they started off towards home.

"He's just the most handsome boy you'll ever meet!" Petunia exclaimed, "And Sally thinks that he fancies me!"

"That's really nice Petunia," Lily replied somewhat absently to her sister's comment that evening as the two girls sat in Lily's room talking.

"I couldn't help but notice that there are a lot of nice looking boys at your school," Petunia, who had become boy crazy in the past couple months, said happily, thinking that she would be attending the school next year.

"Yeah, I suppose there are," Lily replied.

"I saw one who appeared to be smitten with you. He wouldn't stop grinning and looking over at you. He was the second nicest looking one that I saw."

"What did he look like?" Lily asked, curious as to how bad Petunia's judge of people's being smitten was.

"He had the most gorgeous hazel colored eyes and messy jet black hair. He was kind of tall, a little shorter than you, but you could just tell he's going to be really tall in a couple of years. His smile was something you might find in a magazine. I felt weak in the knees when he flashed it towards me," Petunia droned on and on about the boy that she had never met, "And he laughed when you poked me in the eye."

Lily had stopped paying attention when talk of the boy had turned into talk about his two good-looking friends and the third not so good looking one. But Petunia's last statement caught Lily's attention.

"Which one laughed?" Lily asked, "The one you think is smitten with me?"

"Yes, who else silly?" Petunia laughed a rather annoying fake laugh.

"Oh, that's just Potter then," Lily replied, trying to keep from blushing.

"His name is Potter?"

"Oh, that's his last name," Lily explained, "His first name is James."

"I think he fancies you!" Petunia exclaimed.

Lily shook her head, blushing despite her attempts not to and fighting her horror that Petunia thinking that James Potter fancied her was making her blush, "Of course he does! He's been trying to get me to date him all year!"

"And you said no?" Petunia roared in disbelief, "Have I taught you nothing!"

"He's an arrogant prat," Lily replied, "And no, you haven't taught me anything actually."

Petunia sighed, "Did you get him anything for Christmas?"

"No, why should I?" Lily asked.

Petunia let out a strangled sort of cry and left the room, her hands thrown in the air in disbelief.

"Should I have?" Lily called, unable to resist the temptation of making Petunia go absolutely crazy.

She was rewarded with another half mad cry and the sound of a door slamming across the hall. Lily laughed and went to write Alice.

"James!" A pretty woman in her mid to late forties called happily as she caught sight of her son and his friends standing just outside of Platform 9 and 3/4.

"Mum! Dad!" James Potter exclaimed, turning to see the two people that he most wanted to see but hadn't been expecting to, "What are you doing here?"

"We're picking you up of course!" Mrs. Potter laughed, "Your father managed to get the head Auror to give us the entire two weeks off!"

"I only had to use the old Potter charm," Mr. Potter said, winking at his only son, "There's no resisting the Potter charm, makes any respectable girl's knees turn to jell-o and many men take notice."

"I wish," James muttered, thinking about a certain red-head by the name of Lily Evans.

"See you in a couple of weeks James," Remus said, snapping James out of his reverie.

"Yeah, have a nice Christmas Remus," James replied, "And I hope that you come back feeling fine."

"Yeah," Remus replied, shifting nervously under the curious gaze of Mrs. Potter, "I hope so too."

This Christmas break contained a full moon. Remus would be going through his monthly transformation into a werewolf locked in the basement of his parents' house, just like he had before going to Hogwarts. At Hogwarts he at least transformed in a house that was built for a werewolf's monthly rampages; he was always terrified that he would somehow break out of the basement and end up accidentally biting, or worse, killing one or both of his parents.

Sirius sighed dramatically, "Here comes my adoring family. I'd better go."

"Merry Christmas Sirius," Peter called happily after his friend, oblivious to the fact that Mrs. Black was being restrained from attacking Sirius by her husband and a young boy.

Sirius waved to his friends sullenly as he walked through the barrier, narrowly dodging his mother's latest attempt to get at his throat.

"Well then," Mrs. Potter said, "Are you ready to go James?"

James gave his friends a grin before following his parents off the platform and into King's Cross. Mr. Potter wheeled James's trunk over to the family's car and James helped him load it in. Just as James was climbing into the car he glanced out and spotted Sirius nursing a bloodied lip and a satisfied looking Mrs. Black. Sirius's younger brother, Regulus, smirked and Mr. Black grinned satisfyingly as he stepped away from his oldest son. James shook his head helplessly as his best friend was punched in the stomach by Regulus and Mrs. Black slapped him across the face.

"Come on James, there's nothing we can do," Mr. Potter clapped a hand on his son's shoulder and the two climbed into the car where Mrs. Potter already sat waiting.

James sighed as his father started the car and they pulled out of the parking lot and started home. His mother glanced back at him, looking worried.

"Is everything okay?" Mrs. Potter tried but failed to keep the worry out of her voice.

"Everything's fine Mum," James replied, mustering up a smile for her, "Nothing's happening out of the ordinary."

"Who is she?" Mrs. Potter asked.

James laughed, "How do you know it's a 'she' Mum?"

"I can read you Potter men like a book."

The Potter family laughed and James pushed all thought of his friend's problems to the back of his mind.

"LILY!" Petunia cried shrilly very early in the morning, "IT'S CHRISTMAS! WAKE UP!"

Lily groaned and looked over at her clock sleepily; the glowing red numbers read 4:30AM. Lily rolled out of bed and shuffled over to the door. She opened it and found herself face to face with a very eager looking Petunia.  
"You lazy butt, come on!" Petunia practically gave Lily whiplash as she dragged her downstairs to open presents.

"Morning Lily," Mrs. Evans murmured sleepily as she handed Lily a steamy cup of coffee, "Did you sleep well?"

Lily shook her head and pointed to her sister, "I would have continued to sleep just fine for hours if **_that_** hadn't have woken me up."

"Don't refer to your sister as a 'that'," Mr. Evans scolded half-heartedly, "Although I do think you could have waited another two hours or so."

"But its Christmas," Petunia whined, "And I don't have lots of friends at a magical school that are sending me presents. I wanted Lily to have enough time to open her presents."

"Awww," Mrs. Evans cooed, "Aren't you a little angel?"

"I'll tell you what she's not," Lily muttered so that nobody could hear her, "I would have been just happy waiting until dawn to open my presents."

Petunia practically threw herself on top of the pile of presents and started ripping them open. Every so often she would make a noise as if disgusted with what she had received. Lily shook her head and grabbed two presents from under the tree.

"These are for you," she said, handing the neatly wrapped presents to her parents.

Lily waited patiently as her parents slowly unwrapped their gifts. Her mother gasped with delight as she pulled a silky deep red scarf that suited her complexion perfectly.

"Oh Lily, it's the most beautiful scarf I've ever seen. Thank you so much, I love it!" Mrs. Evans gasped.

Lily just beamed and turned towards her father. He opened the box and pulled out a deep red silk tie that matched the scarf the Mrs. Evans had gotten.

"Lily, this is the nicest looking tie I've ever seen. What's it made out of?" Mr. Evans asked curiously.

"It's made from the hair of a sphinx and is colored with a dye made with a phoenix feather," Lily explained, "I ordered it from a catalog and they sent it to me by owl post."

"It's lovely dear," Mrs. Evans said, taking the tie from her husband and laying it safely on the table with her scarf, "Such a thoughtful present. Now, open your presents."

Lily eagerly sat and started opening presents. She got a new set of school clothes from her parents, _All you Need is a Little Charm_ from Alice and a cheap little journal from Petunia. When Lily came upon her last gift she looked all over for a tag but couldn't find one anywhere. She opened it curiously, hoping to find a note on the inside.

When she had gotten the messily wrapped present fully open, out fell a little slip of paper and the most beautiful locket Lily had ever seen. It was pure silver and was on a slim silver chain. The locket was heart shaped and had emeralds set into it. Lily gasped in amazement and fumbled for the tiny slip of paper that had fallen out of the wrappings. All it said, in a very messy scrawl, was 'to Lily Evans'.

James Potter woke up suddenly in the pitch black of night. He sat up in bed excitedly, pulled on his robe and slipped his feet into his slippers. Silently he clambered out of bed and opened the door cautiously. James crept soundlessly down the hall. As he neared his parents' door he got down on his hands and knees and inched along the floor. James held his breath and commando crawled past his parents' room. He reached the stairs, stood up, and went down them very, very slowly at the point where they joined the wall and were less likely to creak.

James had barely dared to breathe on his annual trek downstairs at midnight on Christmas. He was ecstatic, having never made it without being caught by one or both parents. He let out a sigh of relief as he entered the Living Room.

"James Orion Potter, you get yourself back upstairs and wake your father this instant!" Mrs. Potter scolded, waving her wand for a light to come on, "Don't even think of opening your presents without him!"

James had jumped three feet into the air at the sound of his mother's voice.

"No need," Mr. Potter laughed as he came into the room, "James, you really need to remember not to do your own theme music while going down the hall. It was loud enough to wake out neighbors, three houses down!"

James gave his parent's a sheepish look as he crossed to the tree and started sorting the presents into four piles. There was one pile for Mrs. Potter, one for Mr. Potter, one for James, and one for Allen, their house elf.

"Go ahead and open your presents, dear," Mrs. Potter urged, "Oh, I do remember the first time we did this, you must have been about 6. You woke up and remembered that it was Christmas. We had been discussing when one day became the next a few days ago; you were a very curious child. Well, looking at the clock in your room, you saw that it was 12:01. Knowing that meant it was already Christmas, you rolled out of bed, landed on the floor with a thump, and proceeded to run down the hall like the house was on fire. You were yelling and waving your arms and your father and I were scared to death. We followed you and you dove into the pile of presents, squealing happily and laughing."

"And every year since I've tried to sneak down early and you've caught me, told me that story and then let me open my presents," James finished.

"Maybe this year I ought to send you back up to bed," Mrs. Potter teased, "Your father and I will open our presents and you can wait until tomorrow."

"That's perfectly alright Mum," James replied hastily, "Here's your pile!"

James dumped his mother's presents into her lap and then did the same with his father's. Then he took a seat on the floor and began to open his own gifts.

"So, James, what did you get that girl that you wouldn't tell me about for Christmas?" Mrs. Potter asked, teasingly.

"I got her the perfect-" James started, and then cut himself off, "Hey! That's not fair; I was concentrating on opening my presents!"

"So it is a girl!" Mrs. Potter cried triumphantly, "Tell me all about her!"

"She's going to get it out of you one way or another," Mr. Potter advised, "If you wait for the Veritaserum you don't get to pick what you tell her."

"Good point," James replied as his mother smacked his father's hand playfully.

"Go ahead, James. I want to know all about her," Mrs. Potter said happily.

"Well," James started slowly, "She's a Muggle born and she's in Gryffindor. She's about average height and has curly auburn hair and the brightest green eyes anyone's ever seen. She's really smart and sweet to everyone but she hates people who pick on others. Her best subject is Charms and she got stuck in Detention with me once, no, twice."

"What's her name?" Mrs. Potter prompted.

"Lily Evans," James replied, suddenly remembering the gift in his hands, which turned out to be a new pair of glasses.

"And what did you get her for Christmas?" Mr. Potter asked.

"A silver locket with tiny emeralds set in it."

Mrs. Potter looked carefully at her son, "You didn't tell her it was from you, did you?"

James shook his head and turned back to his gift opening, refusing to answer any more questions about Lily Evans.

* * *

**AN/ Oh guys, I'm sooo sorry that I haven't updated in what seems like years! You have to get on me when I do things like that! I have no excuse, oh, I feel terrible. Just wanted to let you know that I did not, contrary to popular belief, fall off the face of the earth. So coming up:**

**Snowball fight**

**Marauders get their name**

**end of first year**

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter, please review, even if it's only to yell at me for taking so long!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**

**RaNdOm QuOtE**

**Last chapter was Eleanor Roosevelt. ****This time, I have no idea who said it, but it's cute!**

**"The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese!"**


	6. Chapter 6: To Survive The First Year 5

**AN/ Hey guys! See I told you I'd post sooner!This chapter is comingout in a burst of final week of my Freshman year excitment! Yep, we get out on Wednesday! WOOT WOOT!**

**ENJOY!**

* * *

**6. To Survive the First Year (part 5)**

"Oh Alice, isn't it the most beautiful locket you've ever seen?" Lily asked, showing Alice her favorite Christmas present which she hadn't taken off since she first put it on.

"Who got that for you?" Alice asked, gaping at the beautiful heart-shaped locket.

"I haven't the slightest idea Alice, but if I knew I would kiss them!" Lily exclaimed happily.

"I bet you have a secret admirer Lily!" Alice squealed.

"Do you really think so?" Lily asked, "I was a little afraid it was just Potter."

"No, he would have given it to you in person," Alice replied, "He's not one to be giving secret presents."

Lily wasn't so sure, but she didn't argue. Instead she glanced at the list that hung beside her bed in the first year girl's dorm.

"Oh no!" Lily gasped, "Something else is crossed off!"

"What!" Alice cried, scrambling through the half unpacked mess of a dorm room and over Lily's bed, "Which one?"

"He lost his dumb glasses!" Lily wailed, "Now there's only three things left on the list!"

"Yes!" Alice cried happily, "You two will be dating before the end of the year!"

"He'll never get that last one accomplished," Lily replied confidently, "I'll never date James Potter."

Alice just smirked unbelievingly and looked at the list which now read.

**Make a top grade in the class**

**Actually grow taller than Lily**

**And, most importantly, stop being a FILTY, IRROGANT, IMPOSSIBLE, ANNOYING, FILTHY, ROTTEN, TOERAG and DEFLATE HIS GALATIC SIZED EGO**

"Lily, have you seen James?" Marlene McKinnon asked as she entered the dorm room with her luggage, "I know he's here because I saw him on the train but now I can't find him anywhere."

"I haven't seen him, but apparently he's gotten some new glasses," Lily replied, "It's been checked off the list."

"You're joking!" Dorcas exclaimed, coming into the dorm room behind Marlene.

"No, she's not," Emmeline assured, following Dorcas into the battle zone-esque room, "I just saw him in the Common Room and he's got a brand new pair. They look a million times better than the old ones did."

"Anything would have been better than those dorky old things," Dorcas muttered, "Is anyone up for a snowball fight?"

"I'm in!" Marlene and Emmeline chorused.

"That sounds fun!" Alice exclaimed.

"We've got to unpack," Lily protested.

"Come on Lily, it's still light for a couple hours and your luggage isn't going anywhere," Alice urged, "Let's go, please!"

"Oh, okay," Lily agreed.

"Great, I'll get the guys!" Dorcas called, already halfway down the stairs, the others followed her excitedly.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Lily muttered to herself before following the other girls down to the Common Room.

* * *

After a trip back up to the dormitory to get their cloaks, scarves, hats, and mittens, the 1st year Gryffindors were all congregated near the frozen lake on the Hogwarts grounds. They stood in a group discussing the teams.

"I think we ought to play girls vs. guys," Dorcas suggested.

"No, the teams should be mixed!" Emmeline argued, "Lily and Marlene are the only girls with any kind of aim!"

"We boys wouldn't want an unfair advantage," James agreed.

"James Potter, I could beat your scrawny butt any day," Lily snapped, "But I think our teams should be mixed for other reasons."

Lily looked pointedly at Frank and Alice who weren't having any part in the discussion but instead talking softly apart from the others. Everyone else, minus Peter who was too busy trying to put his glove on the wrong hand, nodded knowingly.

"I've got it!" Marlene exclaimed.

"Well don't give it to me!" Sirius cried, backing away as if Marlene had some sort of disease.

"What," Remus started, "are you talking about."

"I don't want the flu!" Sirius hid behind Emmeline and covered his mouth.

"Sirius, I don't have the flu, you idiot," Marlene shouted exasperatedly, "I've got the solution to our team dilemma."

"Oh," Sirius replied, coming out from behind Emmeline, "I knew that."

"What's your idea, Marlene?" Emmeline asked.

"Well, Em, I say we get in five teams of two with a girl and guy on each."

"How are we going to decide teams?" Dorcas asked.

"Well, Alice and Frank should be together. I'll go with Sirius, Dorcas with Peter and Em with Remus."

"But that means…" Lily started.

"YOU'RE WITH ME!" James sang happily as he grabbed Lily's hand and started dancing.

"James, stop!" Lily cried uselessly as he twirled her around and around.

"Give me that!" Dorcas snapped, seizing Peter's glove and shoving it onto the right hand and then doing so with the other.

"Thanks Dorcas!" Peter said happily, "My hands were getting cold!"

Dorcas shook her head, "Now for the rules. No magic and no ice or rocks in the snowballs."

"Sounds good," Emmeline agreed and everyone echoed, "We'll start in exactly ten minutes!"

"Ready, GO!" Remus shouted and the crowd of people scattered, James dragging Lily off by the hand and Frank and Alice ambling slowly towards the lake.

* * *

RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV

"Remus, we need a strategy!" Emmeline insisted as the couple stopped running when they reached Hagrid's hut.

"You're right," Remus replied, "Got any ideas?"

"How about we build a fort between the pumpkins and start making snowballs."

"We can ambush anyone who comes our way and nobody can sneak up on us because of Hagrid's house, the woods and the flat grounds," Remus exclaimed, "Great idea Emmeline!"

"Thanks," Emmeline replied, smiling at Remus, suddenly shy.

"Er, let's get building," Remus suggested awkwardly and the two soon forgot all about anything other than making snowballs and snow forts.

* * *

PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM

"Peter, start making snowballs!" Dorcas ordered.

"I don't know how," Peter wailed.

"Lord, help me," Dorcas muttered, "You can't be serious."

Peter just sniffed in reply and rubbed his runny nose.

"Fine," Dorcas said shortly, "Watch me."

She scooped up a handful of snow and packed it together into a perfectly shaped snowball. Then she chucked it at Peter.

"Now, you try," Dorcas told Peter as he wiped the snow off of his face.

"Okay," Peter replied, scooping up some snow and packing it into a tiny, oddly shaped snowball, "How's that?"

"I suppose that will have to do," Dorcas sighed, "Now make another couple of hundred and we'll be good to go."

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm building the fort, now start making snowballs!"

* * *

FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP

"So, what were the rules?" Alice asked Frank as they reached the frozen banks of the lake, "I wasn't really listening."

"I think they were no magic, ice or rocks," Frank replied, "But I wasn't really listening either."

"So, what's our strategy?" Alice asked after a minute, "We don't even know what's going on."

"Well," Frank started, "I guess we ought to build a fort of some sort. If we build it on the ice then we can see anyone that's coming."

"But what if the ice breaks?" Alice asked worriedly, "It doesn't look all that solid."

"Alice," Frank said soothingly, "That ice must be about three feet thick; don't worry about it breaking. I think it's plenty solid."

"If you're sure," Alice replied skeptically, but started out onto the ice anyway, "Did you hear that?"  
"No."

"Oh, well the ice just creaked."

"No, it didn't," Frank assured, "Everything's fine."

"I swear I heard it creak!" Alice insisted.

"Alice," Frank sighed, "If you're so afraid then give me your hand. The ice is definitely not going anywhere."

Alice gave Frank her hand and Frank started the slow progress across the ice.

* * *

SB MM SB MM SB MM SB MM SB MM SB MM SB MM

Sirius, stop running, I'm tired!" Marlene called to the quickly shrinking back of Sirius Black.

"Okay," Sirius replied, "We're already in the forest anyway."

"Way to be observant Sirius," Marlene said sarcastically, "I hadn't noticed the really thick trees and the branch that hit me twenty feet back."

"You may want to think about glasses Marlene," Sirius informed her solemnly.

"So, genius, what's the plan?"

"We climb trees and hit them when they least expect it!" Sirius shouted.

"Sirius Black, that has got to be the best idea I've ever heard!" Marlene exclaimed excitedly, "Now start making those snowballs!"

Sirius and Marlene each made about twenty snowballs and then looked around for a good tree to climb.

"I call that one!" Sirius cried suddenly, pointing to an easy to climb tree.

"Fine, I'm going up that one," Marlene replied, pointing to a nearby tree and walking over towards it.

Marlene clambered quickly up into her tree and settled her snowballs in the 'v' of the branches. Then she turned to see how Sirius was faring. She found him hanging upside down off a tree branch by the belt loop of his pants.

"Sirius, what are you doing?"

"Oh, just hanging around," Sirius replied, "Can you hand me that snowball I dropped?"

* * *

JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE

"MMMPHHH!" Lily cried as she tripped and pulled James down on top of her. She landed face first in the snow.

"What did you say?" James asked, not bothering himself to stand up.

"I said, GET OFF!" Lily shouted after spitting her mouthful of snow out.

"Oh, sorry, no can do," James replied, "Besides, you know you like it."

"POTTER!" Lily growled menacingly.

"On second thought," James stuttered and rolled off of Lily.

"So Potter, what's your plan?"

"Well, I was thinking we could grab a bite to eat and then go to this really cool secret room I heard about called the Room of Requirement."

"I was talking about for the snowball fight," Lily rolled her eyes.

"So was I," James informed her.

"You know," Lily replied, "Going inside the castle wasn't against the rules. I like that idea Potter."

"So Miss Evans, what do you say we hit the kitchens?" James asked bowing and opening the door into the Great Hall.

"That's a lovely idea Mr. Potter," Lily replied, mock curtsying, "And I would very much like to see this Room of Requirement."

* * *

RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV RL EV

"Remus, it's the ten minute mark!" Emmeline exclaimed softly, "Why don't we go and ambush someone else?"

"If that's what you want to do," Remus replied, putting the finishing touches on their monstrous snow fort.

Emmeline nodded, "I think that it will be fun."

Remus grinned, stood up and brushed the snow off of his pants. Then he offered Emmeline his hand and helped her up off the ground. She turned an awkward shade of pink and smiled shyly back at him.

"Which way, Mademoiselle?" Remus asked, bowing.

"Towards the lake, Monsieur," Emmeline replied, "I want to check on Frank and Alice."

"Oh, good idea," Remus replied, "I know there has to be something going on there."

"Besides," Emmeline added, "Even if there's not it'd be fun to get them with the snowballs when they aren't expecting it."

"You are a mastermind, Em," Remus laughed, "A snow-war mastermind."

"Thank you Remus, I do try ever so much," Emmeline replied, taking Remus arm and skipping off along the cover of the woods.

* * *

PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM PP DM

"PETER!" Dorcas bellowed, "You just knocked over our fort!"

"I'm sorry," Peter squeaked, "I didn't mean to!"

"Watch it, you're knocking more and more over!"

"Maybe we should give up on the fort?"

"What?"

"I-I-I said m-m-maybe we s-s-should give up-p-p on the f-f-f-fort." Peter stammered.

"Peter, that's a brilliant idea!" Dorcas exclaimed, "We'll ambush Frank and Alice! It's perfect! I could almost kiss you!"

Peter leaned towards Dorcas eagerly.

"Almost being the operative term there," Dorcas added hastily and darted off towards the lake as Peter's face fell. He shrugged and followed her.

* * *

SB MM SB MM SB MM SB MM SB MM SB MM SB MM SB MM

"Look," Marlene hissed, "Here comes somebody!"

"Where?" Sirius hissed back, "I don't see anyone!"

Marlene pointed through the trees at two shadowy figures and mouthed, "Get ready."

Sirius nodded.

"Ready?"

Sirius nodded.

"Ambush!" Marlene bellowed at the top of her lungs and the pair immeadiately started throwing snow down on the heads of the unfortunate passersby.

"McKinnon, Black, what are you doing up there?" called the angry voice of none other than Andrew Weasley, the 7th year Gryffindor who happened to be Head Boy.

Marlene looked down at a very angry looking Andrew Weasley and his current girlfriend, Rachel Martens.

"RUN!" She screamed at Sirius and the two jumped out of the tree and took off at full speed towards the lake.

* * *

FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP FL AP

"Look, there they come!" Alice exclaimed, pointing across the frozen lake to the approaching Dorcas and Peter.

"Are you ready?" Frank asked Alice, grabbing as many snowballs as he could hold, "I can hold them off if you're not."

"Oh, I'm ready," Alice replied.

Then Remus and Emmeline pelted her with a snowball from behind and Sirius and Marlene got them from either side while Dorcas and Peter ran to join the fray. After the four teams called a truce they all collapsed laughing in the snow. (Somehow they had managed to move completely off the frozen lake and into the snowdrifts to regain ammo.)

"Wait a second, where's James and Lily?" Marlene asked suddenly.

"I don't know," Alice replied, suddenly thoughtful, "I don't think I've seen them since the game officially started."

"James isn't one to sit around during a snow war." Sirius added.

"Neither is Lily," the girls chorused, then laughed as they thought about a previous snow war where Lily was playing against the other four girls and had managed to make them all surrender within five minutes.

"I wonder…" Remus started.

* * *

JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE

"I've never seen anyone eat that much!" Lily exclaimed as she peered at James over her mug of steaming hot chocolate.

"Then you've obviously not watched Sirius recently," James replied as he stuffed the last three cookies in his mouth at once.

"After that display, I don't think I want to," Lily teased, "That's disgusting Potter."

"Ah, so we're back to last names, eh Evans?"

"Potter, we were never on a first name basis." Lily retorted.

"You call Remus and Peter by their first names," James protested.

"Yes, well, I tend to call human beings by their first names. Now where's this room you were talking about?"

"I'm not showing you now that you said I wasn't human." James pouted, crossing his arms and turning his back to Lily.

"Oh, come **_on_** Potter," Lily pleaded coming around to James' front, "You were telling me all about this lovely room, and now you won't let me see it? That's not fair."

James just shrugged and turned away again.

"Please, James, I mean Potter," Lily corrected quickly, "What can I do to get you to show me?"

"You can kiss me again," James replied hopefully.

"Um, that's not going to happen, James."

"You called me James, again!" James suddenly jumped off his stool and started doing a jig.

"Okay," Lily said, giving James a skeptical look, "If it makes you so happy, then maybe I'll call you James more often."

"Sounds good… Lily," James replied, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Now that's just weird."

"Come on!" James cried behind him to Lily who was still giving him a skeptical look.

"Where are we going?"

"We're going to the Room of Requirement, of course!" James called, grabbing Lily by the hand and dragging her out of the kitchens.

* * *

SB MM PP DM AP FL RL EV

"What do you wonder?" Marlene exclaimed.

"You don't think…" Emmeline asked Remus.

"Think what?" Sirius begged.

"I hope so," Remus replied, ignoring Sirius.

"WHAT DO YOU HOPE!" Marlene and Sirius roared.

"There's no point in yelling," Emmeline muttered.

"Yeah, we're standing right here," Remus added.

"Remus Lupin and Emmeline Vance, you tell us what you're talking about right this minute!" Marlene growled menacingly.

"What she said," Sirius added, nodding his head and looking quite proud of himself.

"We were saying that James and Lily are probably not even outside. If they were, I'm sure we'd hear Lily yelling at James." Emmeline explained.

"But where did they go?" Dorcas asked.

"I'll give you one guess," Remus replied.

"Library?" suggested Alice.

"Gryffindor Tower?" Frank put in.

"Detention?" Marlene laughed, thinking of James.

"Slytherin Common Room?" Sirius said hopefully.

"I have no clue." Dorcas admitted after thinking for a second.

"Quidditch Pitch?" Peter squeaked.

"Peter, that's outside. And besides, they went to the kitchens." Emmeline stated in a matter of fact tone as Remus nodded agreement.

"How do you know?" Dorcas asked.

"Because," Emmeline responded, "James is always hungry. And anyways, I head James suggest it."

"Oh," everyone replied.

"I'm hungry." Sirius declared loudly, "Let's eat."

So, with echoes of agreement from the others, the group set off towards the kitchens, which were recently vacated by Lily and James.

* * *

JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE JP LE

"So basically you're saying it will take on whatever form I want it to?" Lily asked skeptically.

"You don't believe me, Miss Evans you wound me!" James exclaimed, clutching at his chest.

"Fine, I'll try it. But if you start laughing at me, James Potter," Lily threatened.

"I won't, Potter's honor."

"Why does that not reassure me?" Lily groaned but started walking in front of the blank space of wall anyways; focusing on the shape that she wanted the room to take.

"Three!" Lily shouted, turning to face the wall, "See Potter you made the whole thing…"

Lily just gaped at the wall where a door had appeared. James opened the door and bowed, indicating that Lily should go in.

"After you, Miss Evans."

Lily didn't move, so James gave her a little push and she moved slowly into the room. James followed her, locked the door and looked around the room. It had taken the appearance of a common room, rather like the Gryffindor one, but with Muggle entertainment items scattered throughout the room.

"What's that!" James asked excitedly, pointing to the TV and VCR hook up excitedly, "and that?" (The foosball table) "And that?" (The indoor basketball hoop) "Oh, and what's that?" (The pool table)

Lily laughed, "James, welcome to the Muggle world of entertainment."

James gaped as Lily began to explain to him the finer points of Muggle entertainment. It wasn't until a while later that the two head a muffled voice coming from James's back pocket.

"What was that?" Lily asked.

"Oh, it's just Sirius. It's a two-way mirror," James explained, "My dad gave it to me for Christmas."

"James," Sirius's voice called from the mirror as James pulled it out and looked into it. Lily went behind James to peer over his shoulder curiously.

"Hey Sirius, what's up?" James asked, as if talking to your best friend through a mirror was a normal daily occurrence.

"Where are you? We've been looking all over!" Remus exclaimed, snatching the mirror from Sirius.

"We're in the Room of Requirement," James replied, "It's really cool, Lily's got it set up like a Muggle living room or something!"

"Really?" Remus asked excited, "Hold on, we'll be right up!"

"Wait a second!" Lily broke in, "It's time for dinner, but we'll come up afterwards."

"Great," Sirius cried, snatching the mirror back from Remus, "I'm starving!"

"Sirius!" Marlene laughed, "We're in the kitchens, and you just ate!"

"So?"

"Oh never mind, Lily we'll see you at dinner," Marlene said over Sirius's shoulder.

"Bye," Lily replied, right before the mirror went blank.

"I wanted to watch TB!" James pouted.

"First of all," Lily stated, "it's called TV. And second of all, we're coming back after dinner. We'll be able to watch plenty of TV."

And with that Lily unlocked the door to the Room of Requirement and dragged James out by the arm before marching him off to dinner.

* * *

**AN/ Okay, as usual, let me know what you think! A review is only a click away!**

**Coming up next chapter:**

**Marauders get their name**

**End of the School Year**

**Petunia doesn't get her letter (possibly, I don't know yet)**

**Review!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**

**rAnDoM qUoTe:**

**Well, it's from one of my other stories, someday you'll see it in a published work, LOL. The first person to tell me what it's from and who said it will get the next chapter of this story dedicated to them!**

**"If looks could kill, the human population would have died out centuries ago!"**


	7. Chapter 7: To Survive the First Year 6

**AN/ Guess what guys, it's summer vacation! WOOT WOOT! Okay those of you who know my patterns, my loyal readers whom I love ever so much, know that I tend to update in spurts over the summer. I'll update when I'm home and then not at all for a couple of weeks once I go to the beach and Band starts. **

**This chapter dedicated to: _krazygerl_ Yeah, she was the only one who guessed closely. The only thing she guessed wrong was that Fred said it to Katie, not the other way around.**

**Anyways... **

* * *

**7. To Survive the First Year 6**

"Guys, what if we get caught?" Peter wailed.

"SHH!" James, Sirius and Remus all snapped.

"Peter, the only way we're going to get caught is if you keep wailing so all the world can hear us!" James hissed softly.

"Guys, what if we get caught?" Peter asked again in a loud whisper.

"Peter, shut up! We're not going to get caught!" Remus assured in a barely audible whisper.

"But what if we do!"

"Peter, if you don't shut up I'm going to stick my sock in your mouth!" Sirius warned, "Now shut up!"

Peter clamped his mouth shut tight, afraid of getting Sirius' notoriously disgusting sock stuffed into it.

"That's better," James muttered, "Now do you two understand what you need to do?"

"Yes James," Remus said in a bored voice as Peter nodded vigorously with his mouth still firmly clamped shut, "We're going to keep watch on either end of the hall and let you know if anyone shows up."

"Good, now go ahead." James ordered and the two scurried off to their posts, "Ready Sirius?"

"Oh yeah!" Sirius exclaimed, "This is going to rock!"

"Not if you blow our cover!" James replied, "Now, let's get going."

* * *

"What in the world?" Professor McGonagall said, or more screamed, the next morning on her rounds, "If I ever find the nighttime marauders responsible for this, I will give them detention for six months!"

It was all the invisible James could do not to laugh under the cover of his invisibility cloak. He knew that McGonagall would suspect him and the other boys, but he was also confident that they couldn't prove that the Gryffindor boys had anything to do with it.

* * *

"What in the world!" Lily Evans exclaimed as she and the other Gryffindor first years walked past the crowd of people around the new 'mural' outside the Potions classroom on their way to class.

On the wall was a huge mural of a lion eating a snake along with the slogans, 'Gryffindor pride forever' and 'Lions eat Snakes for breakfast'. A Badger and a Raven looked on proudly.

"I think that's a nice addition to the hallway," a passing Ravenclaw sniggered.

"Yes," replied her friend, "It really adds some character."

* * *

"When I find out which one of you is responsible for the 'art' in the dungeons, Gryffindor House will stop suffering. But until then, all of you will not be allowed to leave the Common Room other than for classes and meals. Quidditch try-outs for next year will be postponed indefinitely. If you have any information as to who left us this lovely mural, please come and see me right away." Professor McGonagall announced that night in Gryffindor Tower.

"I thought she said we couldn't leave the Common Room," James muttered.

"She did," Lily replied.

"Well then how are we supposed to give her information if we can't leave the Common Room?" James asked.

"Oh shut up." Lily snapped, "You're such a prat sometimes James. Your little stunt just got all of Gryffindor in trouble."

"What makes you think I did it?" James asked.

"James Potter, you can't look me in the face and honestly tell me that you didn't have anything to do with this."

"Lily, I didn't have anything to do with this," James lied, looking straight at her without blinking, a skill which he had acquired over the years.

"Don't lie to me Potter," Lily said bitterly, "I could have put up with your pranks, but lying is the one thing I cannot stand."

And with that Lily pushed James out of her way and stalked off to the first year girl's dormitory, James calling after her. Alice shot James a look and followed, for once completely blowing Frank off.

"Was it something I said?" James asked dully.

"I don't know mate," Sirius replied, "But she was right. You did lie."

"She would have told McGonagall!" James exclaimed.

"If you think that James, then you don't know Lily," Marlene told him bitterly.

"Yes I do!"

"No, you don't, because Lily would never rat out her friends. She might make them feel awful until they turned themselves in, but she would never rat them out," Marlene said as Dorcas and Emmeline nodded in agreement before the three followed Lily and Alice's example.

"I don't get it," James muttered, "I only told her a tiny lie!"

"Nobody likes to be lied to James," Remus informed him.

"On the bright side," Sirius added cheerfully, "You did find us a killer name!"

"Yeah," Remus muttered, "because that matters so much more than James lying to Lily."

"It is a brilliant name," Peter squeaked, "And don't worry, I lie to my mum all the time. She always gets over it."

"Sorry guys, but I don't think even the name 'Marauders' will make up for how crappy I feel." James replied dismally.

"It's just a girl," Sirius muttered to himself as James started walking away.

"Lily is not just any girl," James snapped, whirling around to face Sirius, "I care about her. She's not like the others."

"Okay James, I get it." Sirius said hastily, trying to calm his best friend down, "Lily's different. She's not 'just a girl'. Don't freak out, I didn't mean it."

"You'd better not have," James growled before storming out of the Common Room.

"I thought we weren't allowed out," Peter said, confused.

"We're not," Remus responded.

"Oh, okay then." Peter replied, nodding, "Wait, then where's he going?"

"I have no idea."

Remus shook his head and the three remaining Marauders and Frank spread out through Gryffindor Tower.

* * *

"So," Lily asked from her seat at the window, "What was his excuse?"

"That doesn't matter Lily," Marlene replied, sitting on her bed.

"Yes, it does," Lily insisted.

"Fine, but don't shoot the messenger," Marlene muttered, referring to Lily's short temper, especially when James Potter was involved, "I think his exact words were 'She would have told McGonagall'. I told him that if he thought that then he didn't know you."

Lily turned to look out the window.

"Lily?" Alice asked.

Lily didn't respond.

"Are you okay?" Alice came to sit beside her on the window seat. Lily turned so that Alice couldn't see her crying.

"Lily, tell us the truth. Do you like James Potter?" Marlene asked suddenly, "You don't like liars, so don't even think about playing that little trick on us."

Lily didn't answer right away. Instead she wiped her eyes and turned to face the others.

"What I tell you will never leave this room, right?" Lily asked and the others nodded, "It's… complicated."

"Lily, it's a yes or no question, how can it be complicated?" Dorcas asked, starting to be annoyed by the whole situation.

"It's not simple," Lily replied, "That's how it can be complicated."

"Well then, enlighten us," Dorcas said sarcastically.

"I was getting to that."

"Not any time soon." Dorcas muttered.

"Shh," Emmeline hissed.

"If you were going to make me answer yes or no, I couldn't answer," Lily started, "At first, I thought he was **_the_** most annoying kid on the face of the planet. But then, and this never leaves this room, I had that fateful detention. Professor McGonagall locked us in her office and said we weren't coming out until we had 'solved this problem or at least reached a common understanding.' I learned more about James Potter in those two hours than I could have learned about him in a month at school.**(LILY TALKING)**

"Potter is basically the opposite of who I thought he was. I don't think I'll ever be able to understand him. Honestly, I think what I like most about him is the fact that when you think he's thinking one thing, he's actually thinking something completely different. I can't make up my mind about him. When I think I have him figured out he does something like, like **_that_**, and completely confuses me again.**(STILL LILY)**

"That's why the answer is so complicated, I like James and I hate James at the same time." **(YES, STILL LILY)**

"That makes no sense whatsoever," Dorcas said after a minute of silence.

"Exactly," Lily replied matter of factly, "because anything involving James Potter makes no sense."

"That's not really fair," Marlene said slowly, "The thing about James that is the easiest to understand is how much he likes you. If you're involved, James is always going to side with you."

"I don't think he really likes her," Emmeline said softly.

"Em, are you blind!" Marlene exclaimed.

"I'm serious Marlene. I don't think that James likes her."

"I really have got to hear the reasoning behind that one!"

"Well, most guys, when they really like a girl, don't put them through the things that James does to Lily. First there's the humiliation of being asked out time after time after time. Then there's also the fact that he lied to her. And, most of the time, she gets treated just like 'one of the guys'."

"So, you're saying that, essentially, I'm just another 'Marauder'?" Lily asked.

"Is that the name they were talking about?" Dorcas asked.

"Yes, James head McGonagall use it this morning when she first saw the 'mural' outside Potions."

"I'm starting to think that maybe Em is right," Marlene said slowly, "if you know that, then maybe you are just 'one of the guys'."

Lily just sighed in reply and turned to look out the window again.

"Sorry Lils, I'm going to have to agree with Marlene and Emmeline on this one," Dorcas stated, "After all, Marlene is our window to guys and Emmeline is the smart one."

"What do you think Alice?" Lily asked, "Because now they're all saying exactly what I've been thinking for a month or so."

"I don't know Lily," Alice replied, thinking for a minute, "I'm going to have to say I'm siding with all of you."

"Well, its unanimous then, James Potter doesn't like me," Lily sighed, "Oh well, it was nice while it lasted, except for when it was extremely annoying, which was most of the time."

"You'll be fine just being friends with James, won't you?" Alice asked.

"Maybe, if he drops the whole 'Lily is my world' act."

"Good, now cheer up and forget that he lied to you. Guys are stupid, they do stupid things. Sometimes you just have to forgive them," Marlene advised.

Dorcas laughed, "Come on you guys, let's go be rebels and sneak down for a late snack."

The other girls agreed and then turned to Lily.

"We can't be perfect little angels all the time," Lily laughed with none of her usual vibrancy, smiling a sad smile that would make your heart break.

"That's my girl!" Dorcas exclaimed, and led the girls down the stairs and out of Gryffindor Tower.

* * *

"I would just like to say congratulations to Mr. Potter, for receiving a perfect mark on the final essay before exams," Professor McGonagall said, beaming at James some weeks later.

The class packed up and walked out of the classroom as the bell rang, signaling the end of the final day of classes before exams.

"Miss Evans, may I have a word with you?" Professor McGonagall asked, or rather commanded from behind her desk.

Lily nodded, without looking up from her essay. She had heard that 'T' or 'Troll' existed as a mark, but had never actually seen one, even on Peter's worst grades. Lily folded up the essay and tucked it safely in her pocket before walking up to McGonagall's desk as the last of the class trickled out.

"Miss Evans, is there something going on, anything that I should know about?" Professor McGonagall prompted, "Obviously that was not one of your better grades and you are one of my top students."

Lily shook her head dumbly.

"If there is anything, anything at all that I can do for you, just let me know. I'm sure that Mr. Potter would be plenty willing to help you."

Lily nodded.

"If you're sure that there is nothing I can help you with, then you may go. But I suggest you learn this material before exams on Monday."

Lily nodded again, secured her bag on her shoulder and walked out of the classroom.

"Evans, what was that about?" James asked falling into step with her from his position beside the doorway, "Were you the one who put the niffler in her office?"

"James Potter, you know as well as I do that Sirius was the one behind that niffler." Lily replied, trying to keep her emotions in check, "And I'm really not in the mood to put up with you right now, so if you'll excuse me…"

And with that Lily walked quickly off. But as she went, she dropped her essay. James bent and picked it up.

"Evans!" James called down the corridor, "Lily, you dropped…"

But Lily was already gone. James was determined not to do anything to annoy Lily because he was still floundering to get back in Lily's graces after lying to her. But curiosity took over after a small length of time (We shall be fair, he put the essay in his pocket before immediately pulling it out and opening it).

James whistled and his eyebrows shot straight up, "Wow, even Peter didn't do that badly."

* * *

"Evans. Evans!" James called shaking Lily as he did so. She jerked awake and looked across the table at him.

"What do you want Potter, I'm trying to study," Lily asked groggily.

"That's my favorite method," James teased, "I sleep on top of my book before every Charms test. Unfortunately, while it requires minimal effort, I find that I do much better if I study with my eyes open and reading the book."

Lily rolled her eyes and gave him a small smile, "I've been studying for 12 hours. I just fell asleep."

"I know," James replied, "Well, I knew that you had been studying for a long time. Anyways, I was wondering if you could help me with something."

"What Potter? I really need to learn this. Exams start on Monday."

"Take a breath Evans, you've got all day tomorrow. Take a little break and help me learn this."

"You got perfect marks on this essay." Lily replied, raising an eyebrow as she looked over at what James was wanting help with.

"Yeah, you'd be surprised how much copying off of Remus pays off," James replied, "I changed a few things here and there and suddenly I get a perfect mark on something."

"Potter, if you always copy off Remus you will fail your exams. You can't copy off of him while you actually take the exam."

"I know, but I forgot about the essay, and honestly, it's the only thing I haven't understood all year."

"I'll try and help you, but Transfiguration isn't my best subject. I prefer Charms, maybe even Potions."

"Please?" James asked, giving Lily the patented Potter puppy-dog eyes.

"Oh, all right." Lily sighed, "Honestly that's what I've been trying to learn all day. I think I have it down, but I'm not sure. Basically the theory that Gregory is trying to get across is that you have to **_want_** to change the object. Simply thinking that you **_ought_ **to change the object is not enough. In order for Transfiguration to work seamlessly there has to be some reason you really want to transfigure the object."

"Basically you're saying that if I wanted to change an apple into an orange simply because I can, it wouldn't work as well as if I wanted an orange to make orange juice or something?"

"Exactly," Lily replied, nodding, "Gregory also goes on to say that the same applies to normal human behavior. If a person really wants something they're more likely to do what they can to get it but if they want something simply to have it…"

"Then they won't really try and get it," James finished softly, looking at Lily as if realizing something, "Lily?"

"Yes James?"

James grinned, "You called me James!"

"Is that what you wanted because if had known I could have called you that right away and you would have left, I would have done it."

"No, I wanted to know about that whole Gregory's Theory thing. But I also wanted to say I'm really sorry."

"Sorry for what? You didn't do anything."

"I'm sorry for lying to you. I really had gotten attached to you being around that I didn't want to mess that up."

"James, that's sweet, but that was weeks ago. I already forgave you."

"But I didn't hear you say it, so I wanted to be sure."

"James Orion Potter, I forgive you. Now go away so I can study!"

"Lily Marie Evans, no way I'm leaving you alone! You skipped lunch, come on and let's go eat dinner. You'll kill yourself before exams even start."

"Fine, but I'm studying again right after dinner, and you have to promise to leave me alone."

"You have all day tomorrow to study. You really need to take a break, just a little one. In fact, I'll study with you tomorrow but for today just put away the books for a little while."

"I don't know. I really need to study."

"Tomorrow, I promise. Besides, you're smart, you already know all of this. Now, put this book in your bag and let's go eat. I'm hungry."

James slipped Lily's essay into her book discreetly before handing it to her. This was the one time nobody could make him feel bad for lying to Lily; but that was only because telling her that he had copied Remus' essay when he really hadn't had helped both of them and caused no harm whatsoever.

"Thanks," Lily whispered as she took James' proffered arm and the two left the library.

"No mademoiselle, thank you," James replied, grinning as he closed the library door and the two walked down the hall, "So, I was thinking we should have some poppy-corn or whatever and watch some TB. It will be the first annual Gryffindor blow-off-some-steam-before-exams bash."

"That sounds perfect," Lily replied, James' grin becoming contagious.

* * *

The other first-year Gryffindors nudged and poked each other, pointing as Lily and James entered the Great Hall, talking and laughing like they had never done before.

"Thank God," Remus muttered.

"You can say that again, I was starting to wonder if we went to Hogwarts or Durmstrang," Emmeline replied.

"I don't get it." Sirius complained as everyone else laughed, "What's so funny?"

"I don't know," Peter informed him, laughing joyfully, "But if you laugh along, you don't look as stupid."

Sirius nodded and joined in the laughter, having never been one who liked to look stupid.

* * *

**AN/ Okay, not quite as far as I was going to write, but next chapter will be the train ride and the summers of Lily and James and everyone else, if I can think of anything interesting for them to do. **

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**

**rAnDoM qUoTe:**

**Hey last one was from KEB. The first person to guess this one and tell me what it says and what it is will get the next chapter dedicated to them. And you know you all want that, right?**

**"Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus"**

**Now, what in the name of all things Harry Potter, is that? You tell me! Good Luck!**


	8. Chapter 8: Summertime Begins

**Ha, my friends, sorry it's been a little longer than it has been, I've been enjoying my summer vacation. Anyways...**

**This chapter goes out to _Jenn_**

**Anyways... for your enjoyment**

* * *

**_8. Summertime Begins_**

"I can't believe the year is over," Alice commented as she lugged her trunk into the compartment the Gryffindors had claimed.

"Me either," Lily replied, looking at the rack that she wanted her trunk in, "And there is no way I can get that up there by myself."

"I'd help you," James replied, coming into the compartment, "But seeing as how the year hasn't officially ended until we get off the train at King's Cross, you can just levitate it up."

"Good point," Lily pulled out her wand and, using a swish and flick, levitated her trunk effortlessly onto the rack.

"So," Marlene said after everyone had squeezed into the very large compartment, "What should we do?"

"We ought to enjoy our last few hours with magic while we can," Dorcas suggested, "Let's play exploding snap."

Sirius thought for a second, "I think we ought to play truth or dare."

The Gryffindors laughed, but Sirius was quite, well, serious. And please excuse the unintentional pun. Anyways, once everyone realized that Sirius had meant what he said, they stopped laughing and looked at him.

"You want to play truth or dare?" Marlene asked, looking at Sirius skeptically.

"Yes, I heard some girls talking about it and I thought it might be fun to play," Sirius replied.

"Erm, okay, is everyone up for a round of truth or dare, Hogwarts style?" Lily asked.

It only took slight convincing on the girls and Sirius' part to convince Peter, the reluctant one, to play. None of the other guys really cared all that much.

"So, here are the rules," Lily announced, "I'm putting a charm on us so that we can only answer truthfully and if we don't do our dare within a reasonable amount of time we will be flipped upside down and dangled from our ankles."

"That sounds complicated," Peter squeaked.

"Not really," Lily replied, "The charm isn't that hard. In fact it's already been cast."

"I want to go first!" Sirius bellowed as the Gryffindors sat down in various places around the compartment.

"Well, then ask someone," Dorcas prompted.

"Lily, truth or dare," Sirius exclaimed.

Lily looked up at him from her seat next to James on the floor, "Hmm, since you are one of the reining prank kings of Hogwarts I'll pick truth."

"James Potter, just the man I've been looking for!" Caleb Parker exclaimed, sticking his head in the compartment, "Can you come with me for a second?"

James stood up from where he was seated between Lily and Dorcas. "Don't do any interesting pranks while I'm gone," He called back over his shoulder.

"Sirius, are you going to ask me the question?" Lily asked, looking expectantly at Sirius, who had completely forgotten about the game.

"Oh, right, the question! Lily Marie Evans, do you like James Potter?" Sirius asked and the compartment went completely silent.

Lily lost all color in her face and replied in an inaudible whisper.

"What's that? I couldn't hear you!" Sirius put his hand beside his ear.

Lily swallowed nervously, "Yes."

"I knew it!" Sirius barked happily.

"But you have to swear not to tell him!" Lily added hurriedly.

"I wouldn't dream of… Wait, what? Why?" Sirius snapped his head around to look at Lily.

"Just don't, please?"

"Fine, but if he asks, I'm telling him," Sirius pouted.

"And that goes for the rest of you too, got it?" Lily asked, giving all of the others a patented Lily-Evans-Death-Glare.

The others nodded solemnly, suddenly sobered by Lily's glare of death.

"Hey guys, what'd I miss?" James asked, beaming as he sat down next to Lily again.

"Nothing!" Everyone hurriedly exclaimed and Lily gave him a huge grin.

"So, James, what was that about?" Lily asked eagerly in order to throw the suspicion off of the conversation when he had walked in.

"Well, Parker was just asking me if I would play Chaser on the team next year!" James exclaimed, easily distracted.

"Oh great," Lily muttered darkly, "that's just what you needed, more Quidditch."

"Do you have a problem with Quidditch Miss Evans?" James asked, putting on his fake stern voice that he used every time Lily complained about Quidditch.

"Oh no Mr. Potter," Lily replied, giving him an innocent smile, "It's just that you'll be so caught up with Quidditch that you'll forget about me."

"Lils, I could never forget about you," James whispered softly and Lily blushed, smiling a shy little smile.

Dorcas cleared her throat, "Lily I think it's your turn to ask truth or dare."

"Oh, um, okay. Alice, do you want truth or dare?" Lily asked.

And so, the game continued without anything more interesting happening than James having to sit in Lily's lap for the rest of the game.

* * *

"LILY!" Petunia screamed early one morning in early July, "LILEEEEE!"

"What is it Petunia?" Lily muttered sleepily as she stumbled into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes.

"An owl is coming!" Petunia replied shrilly, "I think it's my letter!"

"It's too early to be your letter, 'Tunia. Mine didn't come until late in July," Lily replied, heading over to the window to retrieve the letter, "It's probably either a letter from one of my friends or my exam results."

"Well, you wait until it really is my letter," Petunia muttered as Lily untied the letter from the owl's leg, "And don't call me 'Tunia!"

Lily smirked at her raging preteen sister's actions as she opened the letter from Hogwarts. It was, in fact, her exam results from the end-of-year exams. Petunia had lost interest quickly and left the kitchen.

"Yes!" Lily exclaimed, dancing around the empty kitchen excitedly, "I got an E in Transfiguration and an O in everything else!"

Her mother joined in the dancing as she walked into the kitchen, "Lily, why are we dancing?"

"I got really good marks on all my exams!" Lily replied, and her mother took her by the hands and twirled her around the kitchen and into a chair at the table.

"Then we need a special breakfast to celebrate!" Mrs. Evans immediately started making Lily's favorite, scrambled eggs and sausage, "Do me a favor and grab the herbs, Lily."

"Okay Mum!" Lily replied, going out the kitchen door and walking around the side of the house to her mother's herb garden.

She had just picked the last of the needed herbs when she saw two people walking up to the gate, or rather, one person walking and the other severely limping and being half dragged.

Lily hurried to see who it was, "James, Sirius, what happened? Are you okay? What are you doing here?"

"Help me get him inside and I'll explain everything." James replied, handing Sirius over to Lily and following slowly behind.

Lily got Sirius settled on the couch and gave her mother the herbs before coming back with her mother in tow and finding James almost asleep in a chair and Sirius already conked out in his position sprawled across the couch.

"Mom, that one is Sirius Black and this is James Potter," Lily said, gesturing to each of her friends in turn.

Upon hearing his name James woke up and started to stand up.

"Oh no dear, just sit back down and let me get some ice for your friend. I've heard so much about you from Lily. She's always got something to say about both of you," Mrs. Evans hustled out to find Sirius some ice for the nasty black eye he was sporting.

"Spill Potter, what happened?" Lily demanded, sitting down on the arm of James' chair.

"Sirius' mum happened," James replied darkly, "He showed up at my house like that and I knew that Mum would flip out if she saw him. So I got him in the Floo Network and took him to the house of some friends of the family just outside town and brought him here. I remembered all that you had said about your family and I knew that your mum would take him in. You also mentioned something about a guest room, so I knew you had space."

"Hold on a minute, you want me to take him in?" Lily asked.

"Yes," James responded, "But only until he's better, then he can come and stay with me. Sirius doesn't want his parents getting in trouble with WCAPP and Mum is practically their biggest spokesperson."

"WCAPP?"

"Wizarding Child Abuse Prevention Program," James explained.

"Oh, well, I guess he can stay here. Let me ask Mum."

"Of course he can stay here!" Mrs. Evans exclaimed as she came into the room with the ice, "And so can James if he wants to! Your friends are always welcome. Let me go and make up the guest room."

"Well, he can stay then. But you have to stay Potter; he's your best mate!" Lily exclaimed, looking down at James from her perch on the arm of his chair.

"Lily, I have to go. Mum will be wondering where I went. I'll try and come back later, but I don't know if I can," James replied, standing up and walking over to the door.

"James Potter, you'd better come back, if not to stay then at least to visit!"

"Is that an invitation then Miss Evans?"

"No, James, it's an order." Lily said in a matter of fact tone.

"Bye Lils. See you soon." James waved to Lily who was still sitting on the arm of the chair and walked out.

After a second Lily went scurrying after him, "Wait James!" she called just as he reached the gate.

James turned around and Lily ran up to him. She hesitated for a second before throwing her arms up around his neck and hugging him. James was stiff for a second and then relaxed in Lily's arms. He slid his arms around her and held her for a second.

"Thanks James," Lily whispered, breaking away.

"For what?" James asked, more than a little shocked at this strange display from Lily.

"For bringing Sirius here," Lily replied, "It really shows how much you care for your friends. I like knowing that you'd do that same for me."

"Lily, I'll do everything I can if you ever need my help. And that's a promise."

Lily kissed James on the cheek and walked away. James just stood, staring dumbly after her before her actions sank in. Then James did a little victory dance and left the Evans' yard to head home via Floo Powder.

* * *

**AN: Hope you enjoyed, now please review. And I hope that last chapter wasn't stupid or anything. You'll see how it goes. And don't forget Lily and James will hate each other before they date!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**


	9. Chapter 9: A Falling Out

"Sirius Black, you are the most over dramatic person I've ever met in my life!" Lily cried as Sirius moaned and groaned.

"Evans, you've wounded me!" Sirius exclaimed weakly. "I've been torn apart both physically and emotionally and you refuse to even make me a bowl of chicken noodle soup!"

"It's been a week Black, there's nothing physically wrong with you anymore! And you don't seem to be taking anything too hard emotionally either!"

"That's because I bottle my feelings inside! Just like you do with your feelings about… James, how simply smashing to see you!"

Lily whirled around to face the door to the guest room. Upon finding the doorway empty she peered out into the hall.

"Sirius Black! If you weren't here for the reasons you are, I'd—"

"LILEEEEE!" Petunia squealed in fright from downstairs. "THERE'S ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE BIRDS HERE!"

"You'd think she'd be used to that by now," Lily muttered as she went out of the room that Sirius occupied and down the stairs.

Lily found an owl perched on one of the kitchen chairs and Petunia crouched behind the kitchen counter brandishing a ladle. Lily shook her head at the strange sight and untied the letter from the owl's leg.

"Who's it from?" Sirius asked excitedly as he walked into the kitchen for the first time since he came to the Evans' residence.

"It's from Potter and I thought you were too 'torn apart both physically and emotionally' to come downstairs for a bowl of soup," Lily replied, opening the letter to read it.

"Oh, I made a miraculous recovery due to your wonderful chicken noodle soup making abilities. Now read it out loud!"

"Fine, it says 'Lily and only Lily, not Sirius'. Oh, looks like I can't read it to you after all."

"What? It doesn't say that! Let me see!" Sirius reached for the letter but the doorbell rang before he could get it.

"Petunia, go and see who's at the door," Lily said absently.

The person at the door was, apparently, very impatient and rang the doorbell again before proceeding to pound ferociously on the door. Petunia left the kitchen muttering about the injustice of older sisters.

Lily's eyes widened as she read further in the letter and she sprinted after Petunia. "Petunia, whatever you do, do not open that door!"

But Petunia, just to spite her sister, opened the door and immediately was blasted backwards with a huge purple flash of magic.

"**WHERE IS MY SON**!" A very angry looking lady demanded.

"I don't know what you mean," Lily replied, trying to ignore her sister's cries of terror as she scampered upstairs. "Who are you looking for? Perhaps I can help you find him."

"**You bloody know who I'm bloody talking about, Mudblood**!" The woman bellowed, turning her wand so that it pointed straight at Lily. "**THE POTTER BRAT TOLD ME YOU HAD HIM!"**

"I'm afraid I don't know—"

"Hey Evans, who's at the door?" Sirius asked, wandering into the front foyer with a bagel in one hand.

**"WHAT LEVELS HAVE YOU SUNK TO? STAYING WITH MUDBLOODS AND MUGGLES! YOUR BROTHER, REGULUS, WOULD NEVER DREAM OF DOING SUCH THINGS! YOU SHOULD TAKE A PAGE OUT OF HIS BOOK! IF THAT POTTER BOY HADN'T TOLD ME EXACTLY WHERE TO FIND YOU, THINK OF WHAT COULD HAVE RUBBED OFF ON YOU! IT'S BAD ENOUGH THAT YOU'RE IN GRYFFINDOR, BUT YOU SHOULD DRAW THE LINE AT ASSOCIATING WITH MUDBLOODS AND MUGGLES!"**

Sirius cowered as his mother continued to rant and rage. Lily looked on in horror that one person could harbor so much hate. Then something that Mrs. Black had said sunk in.

"Hold on a second!" Lily bellowed, looking fierce, even next to the seething Mrs. Black who immediately shut up out of sheer surprise. "You're saying that James Potter told you where to find Sirius. He just outright told you?"

"Yes, I demanded to know where he was hiding my son and he told me you had him and exactly where to find him," Mrs. Black replied, still in shock at Lily's outburst.

"Thank you. Sirius, it's been lovely having you stay here, but I really think maybe you ought to go with your mother for now before going to James' house. Please let him know that I will not, in fact, be able to stay there with everyone next week," Lily said through clenched teeth. "I will see you when school starts."

"Evans, please, let me stay," Sirius hissed, looking at his mother in fear.

"I would, but she won't let you," Lily replied, starting to shake in either fear or anger, Sirius wasn't quite sure. "You'd better go stay with Potter instead."

Sirius nodded, eyeing Lily nervously and followed his mother out the door. He took a large bite out of his bagel and waved as he reached the gate. His mother grabbed his hand, ripped the bagel out of it and bellowed, "**Don't eat their bloody food! You don't know who's put something in it! They could be poisoning you for all you know**!"

Sirius gave the bagel a remorseful look as a dog came and nabbed it before running away with it. Lily just stood in the doorway, fists clenched, shaking in utter rage at one James Potter, a rage that was only made worse by the arrival of a letter from the ministry stating that if she ever did magic while underage and away from Hogwarts, she would be expelled immediately.

* * *

"LILEEEEEEEEEE!" Petunia screamed excitedly up the stairs early on July 31st. "An owl is coming!"

Lily sighed and rolled out of bed calling, "I'll be down in a second!"

"HURRY! IT'S ALMOST HERE!"

"Calm down, I'm coming!" Lily replied as she entered the kitchen, having not even bothered to get dressed.

In the past few days, Petunia had mistaken a plane, a vulture, a hot air balloon, and even a neighbor's pet frog for a Hogwarts owl. Lily peered out the window, half expecting Fluffy, the neighborhood cat, to have been spotted jumping off the Wilson's trash cans or some such thing like that. But instead she was met with the distinct shape of an owl, or rather two owls, making their way across the neighborhood, although she didn't quite agree with Petunia's definition of 'almost here'.

"It really is an owl this time," Lily muttered before turning to her sister. "Go and get Mum. Dad's on business in London, but we'll call him later to tell him the news."

"I told you it was an owl," Petunia muttered darkly as she hurried out of the kitchen to get her mother.

Lily crossed over to the stove and started making some pancakes, sausage and bacon for breakfast while the owls grew steadily closer.

"Oh, look Mum!" Petunia exclaimed pointing out of the window at the approaching owls. "They're coming!"

"At this rate they won't be here for a few more minutes. You should really eat some breakfast while you wait," Mrs. Evans said, steering Petunia into a chair and setting a plate of freshly cooked sausage and bacon in front of her.

Petunia ate blindly, not once tearing her gaze away from the oncoming birds.

"Here Mum, have some breakfast too," Lily said, handing her mother a plate of breakfast.

"No matter what happens, I want you to know that I'm proud of both you girls," Mrs. Evans said with tears in her eyes and a huge smile on her face. "I'm so proud of both of you."

"Thanks Mum," Lily replied, turning off the stove and starting to eat her own breakfast.

Petunia was completely oblivious to anything said or done, even to what she was putting in her mouth. In fact, she was so out of it that she grabbed a napkin and stuck it into her mouth.

Lily laughed as Mrs. Evans pulled the napkin out of her youngest daughter's mouth.

"I think that's enough breakfast for now," Mrs. Evans said, putting Petunia's plate up on the counter and out of reach. "You can finish it later."

Lily was still laughing as the owls flew into the open window.

"You get the letters Lily, I can't look!" Petunia exclaimed dramatically, throwing her hands across her face and then proceeding to peer through her fingers.

"Petunia, you'd give even Sirius Black a run for his money if you wanted to find out who was the most dramatic," Lily muttered as she untied the letters from the owls and flipped them over to read who the were addressed to.

Lily read the address on both of them and then read the addresses again, "Mum, come here for a second."

"What is it Lily?" Mrs. Evans asked as Lily showed her the envelopes. "Oh dear."

"What is it? What's wrong?" Petunia demanded, crossing the kitchen to her mother and sister.

"Petunia, honey, I'm sorry, but both these letters are for Lily," Mrs. Evans said soothingly.

"Mine will come later," Petunia said stubbornly.

"Oh yes, perhaps it will," Mrs. Evans replied, knowing fully well that no such thing would happen For Petunia had never exhibited the same signs as Lily had, signs that the family now knew to be magical.

"It will come!" Petunia cried, running out of the room and upstairs.

Mrs. Evans sighed, "I'll be out in my garden if you need me."

Lily nodded, knowing that her mother always gardened if something was bothering her. She watched her mother go outside and to the garden shed to get her tools before turning back to the letters. One was from Hogwarts; the other was from James Potter.

Lily opened the one from James first since she knew exactly what the Hogwarts one would say. James' letter read:

_Lily,_

_I'm really sorry that Mrs. Black came to your house. There was nothing I could do when she came to me but tell her where Sirius was. You have to trust me on that. I wouldn't have betrayed my best mate like that unless there was no other option. I can't tell you the circumstances around her visit, but maybe I will someday._

_Sirius says you're sick and that's why you can't come and stay over here. I hope this letter finds you better than how sick he's saying you are. We all know Sirius though; he's very dramatic and tends to over exaggerate most things._

_Write me back if you can. I'd really like to know that you're okay. And I hope your sister gets her letter. Mum says we'll probably get them really soon._

_James Potter_

Lily balled up the letter and threw it across the room before retrieving it and smoothing it out to read it again. She read it enough so that she had it memorized and then a few more times before forcing herself to get a hold of herself and open the letter from Hogwarts. It read basically the same thing as the last year's and Lily only glanced over the supply list before putting it away. She looked at the abandoned breakfast in the kitchen before carrying the letters upstairs and putting them somewhere safe. Then she got dressed and walked across the hall to Petunia's room.

"Petunia?" Lily asked softly knocking on the door and giving her sister a little time to compose herself before entering the room. "Petunia, can I come in?"

"Go away!" Petunia shouted, throwing a pillow at her sister as Lily opened the door.

"Petunia, I'm really, really sorry that things didn't work out," Lily said quietly. "But maybe you'll be just as happy at your school. You were telling me all about that boy and it sounded like you had really nice friends."

"Leave me alone!" Petunia grabbed another pillow and threw it at her sister.

"Petunia—"

"I SAID LEAVE ME ALONE YOU FREAK!" Petunia bellowed, grabbing a ceramic pot to throw next.

"Fine," Lily replied, going completely white and starting towards the door. "I'll leave your room, but I'm not going to leave you alone forever."

Petunia chucked the pot at Lily, who ducked, and the pot shattered on the wall just above her head. Lily glanced at the pot, and then at her sister's face, which was a mask of complete hatred, then turned and left the room before Petunia could throw another heavy object, and throw it with better aim.

* * *

"LILY!" Alice shouted as Lily walked onto platform 9 ¾ on September 1st. "I haven't seen you in so long! And you haven't been writing! How are you? Where's your sister!"

Lily smiled weakly at her friend, "I'm doing a lot better just seeing you, Alice. It's been awful, Petunia's been having mood swings and I've definitely become her main target for practicing her throwing techniques. She's been awful to put up with ever since I got my letter and she didn't get one."

"Oh Lily, I'm so sorry. You look tired. James was worried about you; we all were," Alice replied, seizing one end of Lily's trunk and helping her load it onto the train.

"I don't want to see or even hear about James Potter at the moment, Alice," Lily replied as the girls entered an empty compartment. "Have you seen the other girls?"

"We're right here!" Marlene exclaimed as she, Dorcas and Emmeline entered the compartment.

The girls all tried to hug Lily and Alice at once.

"Are you feeling better Lily? Sirius said you were sick," Emmeline asked as the girls broke up the group hug.

"Oh, it's been an awful summer, but I'll be fine once we're back at school. How are you guys?" Lily replied, sitting down as the other girls loaded their trunks into the luggage rack.

"My summer was wonderful!" Emmeline said wistfully. "My parents took me to France and we visited all of the Muggle and Wizarding sights. Then I went to James' and after that I just relaxed at our beach house reading until now."

"Well, my family and Dorcas' family all went to Egypt," Marlene informed everyone. "I tried to lock Dorcas inside a pyramid, but Mum found me. It looks like we'll have to put up with her for another year girls."

The Gryffindor girls all let out fake groans and Dorcas let out a cry of protest.

"Hey! That's not fair. You all know you really wanted me to lock Marlene in a pyramid, not the other way around!" Dorcas exclaimed.

The girls laughed.

"How was your summer Alice?" Emmeline asked.

"Oh, it was wonderful. We spent it at the beach, but I'll tell you now I wasn't reading like Em was," Alice replied. "I spent it hanging out with the other kids who vacation there every summer and going to barbeques and laying out on the beach. And then I went to James' with the rest of you and then I went back to the beach and went shopping."

"I never would have guessed," Dorcas laughed. "You love to shop."

"It's a gift, not a problem," Alice stuck her tongue out at Dorcas and the others laughed.

Lily was just drifting off when the train whistle blew and the compartment door opened to reveal the Marauders. The compartment was filled with greetings as the Gryffindors had their reunion. Then the door slid open again and in walked Frank and the compartment was once again filled with greetings as Lily sat looking on.

"Lily," Remus said, nodding as he sat down next to Lily.

"Hi Remus," Lily replied. "How are you?"

"I'm tired, what about you?"

"You have no idea. My summer was a nightmare."

Remus laughed, "I'm glad I'm not the only one. I guess your sister isn't a witch then."

"Not unless you mean in the Muggle sense of the word. And I get to suffer because of it. You want to know something?"

"Sure."

"I didn't think I'd ever be happy to be going back to school," Lily said and Remus nodded.

"I know the feeling," Remus replied quietly. "Is something wrong?"

"Yeah, but mostly I'm just tired," Lily responded, laying her head back on the back of the seat.

"LILY EVANS!" James called and Lily opened her eyes to find herself facing James now and not Remus. "Are you okay? You didn't ever write me back! And you don't look like your usual alert self."

"Leave me alone, Potter, I don't want to talk to you right now," Lily replied, laying her head back down and closing her eyes.

"But Lileee," James protested. "Just talk to me for a second. Please? Then I'll leave you alone for as long as you want."

"Fine, Potter, I'll talk to you for a second, but then you've got to leave me alone until I tell you otherwise."

"Deal!" James exclaimed, completely missing the dangerous flashing of Lily's eyes.

"I want to talk to you about how you abandoned Sirius at my house and then sic his mother on us. I want to talk to you about how I could be expelled if I do magic again outside Hogwarts when I didn't do anything. And most of all I want to talk to you about how you pretend to care if my sister got accepted just like you pretend to care about me!" Lily bellowed and the compartment went silent. In fact it seemed as if the entire train had gone silent.

"Erm," Remus started. "I think we'd better go and, um, yeah, we'll see you later."

The compartment emptied out leaving Lily and James alone.

"Lily, I didn't sic his mother on you. I would never do that!" James protested. "And I have no idea what you're talking about! What's that about being expelled and not caring about you or your sister?"

"If you didn't sic Sirius' mum on us then what did you do? Huh, Potter? Because I'm pretty sure that a very angry Mrs. Black showed up at my house and blasted my sister before taking her son and calling me some very ugly things!"

"Lily, you have to understand—"

"Just tell me, what happened, Potter," Lily demanded.

"I can't, but you have to believe me that it was beyond my control! I couldn't do anything to stop her from finding out where you and Sirius were!"

"I liked you, Potter. And I thought that you really cared about me and about all of your friends! But now I know better than to think that! You're no better than any of those scumbags I've met at my other schools who use people until they don't need them anymore! Now leave me alone like you promised you would! I don't want to talk to you now or ever!"

"Lily, calm down. This can't be good for your blood pressure," James urged. "If you can calm down, we can talk this out. You've got to stop bottling these things up. It's really not healthy!"

"The whole Lily-is-my-world act is getting old, Potter. You promised you'd leave me alone after I talked to you for a second, now are you going to break that promise too?"

"You say that like I've broken a promise to you before. Lily, is that what this is all about? Did I break a promise?"

"Get out, Potter, before I start throwing things like my sister does!"

"Lily—"

"There you are, Potter!" The Gryffindor Quidditch Captain, Caleb Parker, exclaimed poking his head in the compartment. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Parker, can I come find you later? This is really important," James asked.

"And Quidditch isn't?" Parker replied and to Lily he said, "Would you mind if I stole your boyfriend for a second?"

"He's not my boyfriend and take him. I don't want him," Lily replied.

"I'm not leaving," James informed them stubbornly. "Not until I finish talking with Lily."

"She appears to be finished talking," Parker responded. "Come on Potter, we're having a potential team meeting in one of the larger compartments!"

"I'll be there soon. This will only take a second!" James protested.

"Potter, you'll only be doing her a favor if you leave. She seems to not want you around right now. And if you miss this meeting I'm not letting you play for Gryffindor this year!"

"Fine, then I won't play Quidditch," James replied, not looking away from Lily who stared up at him as equally stubbornly.

"Potter, I was just threatening you! You have to play! We need you! Come on!" The Gryffindor Quidditch Captain looked as if he was about to cry as he pleaded with the stubborn faced James.

"Not play Quidditch? Potter, you have got to be joking! Nothing could make you not play Quidditch!" Lily exclaimed, not for a second letting her death glare weaken.

"If you're so sure about that then maybe you aren't the friend I thought you were," James replied, shaking his head and looking hurt. "Just like with the whole 'betraying you and Sirius' and 'not caring about you' thing. Maybe you don't know me as well as you thought you did. And maybe I don't really know you. Goodbye Evans, I guess I'll see you around."

"I'd much rather not," Lily spat, giving James her last ounce of death glare as he left the compartment.

Caleb Parker was quick to follow after Lily turned her look his way. He scampered down the hall with a cry of, "Potter, wait!"

After the compartment door banged shut behind them, Lily lay her head down and sobbed herself to a much needed sleep.

* * *

**AN/ Sorry guys, I have been writing, I just forgot to post. I know, I know, I'm awful, but i won't do it again! In fact, to make up for it, I'll post the next chunk really soon!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**

**And please, do REVIEW! **


	10. Chapter 10: So hard to be Switzerland

**Hiya guys! Just wanted to say sorry that the last chapter wasn't up to my usual standard. I hope this one is better. I know a really good one is coming up soon!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"She's finally awake," Marlene announced as Lily rubbed her eyes groggily.

"You've been sleeping for ages," Alice informed Lily as Lily struggled to sit up. "You'd better change, we're almost to Hogwarts."

"Where's Potter?" Lily asked as she pulled the robes Dorcas had tossed to her over her head.

"He's around," Marlene replied vaguely. "And he refuses to talk to anyone but the other Marauders."

"What happened, Lily?" Emmeline asked, taking a seat next to Lily. "None of the Marauders will tell us anything, other than Sirius giving a very bad explanation of what you were screaming at James for before we all left."

"James and I are not on the friendliest terms at the moment," Lily replied.

"That's a bit of an understatement," Dorcas muttered sarcastically.

"Care to give us a better idea of what happened?" Alice prompted, giving Dorcas a 'don't annoy her when she's like this' look.

"What did Sirius say?" Lily asked. "I don't want to be repetitive or to say anything that he doesn't want me to. Unlike some people I can be loyal to my friends."

Ignoring Lily's strange statement, the other girls took turns telling Lily what Sirius had explained to them, which was basically that he had stayed with Lily and his mother got mad.

Lily snorted, "I see he gave you the shortened version and left out most of the more gruesome details."

"What do you mean?" Emmeline asked, confused. "I don't quite follow."

Lily sighed, "Saying that his mum got mad was a bigger understatement than mine about Potter and me not being on the friendliest of terms. His mum was furious. She came barging into my house, blasted my sister, called me some things that won't be repeated in the present company, and dragged Sirius out of the house before taking his bagel away from him and accusing my family of poisoning the food. And that's still the short version."

The Gryffindor girls looked at the enraged Lily shocked.

"But what does that have to do with James?" Alice finally dared to ask the seething Lily.

"He's the one who told Mrs. Black exactly where to find Sirius," Lily announced to receive gasps from the other girls.

"He wouldn't," Marlene stuttered. "I didn't- he- but- and- Oh, I'll be right back!"

And with that Marlene McKinnon stormed out of the compartment to confront her longtime friend and partner in crime, James Potter. She stormed down the hallway of the train, in the process scattering several first-years and shoving aside a few fifth-years before throwing open the door to a compartment in the next car up.

"James Orion Potter, no wonder Lily is so mad at you!" Marlene bellowed as three terrified looking first-years turned to look at the seething second-year Gryffindor, "Oh, oops, sorry about that! I've got the wrong compartment. Erm, go Gryffindor? Hope to see you after the sorting!"

And with that Marlene slid the compartment door closed and recollected her anger before throwing open the correct compartment door this time. The door bounced with a loud **BANG** causing everyone in the compartment to jump with surprise.

"James Orion Potter, no wonder Lily is mad at you!" Marlene bellowed for a second time as the other three Marauders scurried out of her path towards James.

"I was wondering when you'd turn up," James commented rather calmly as Marlene got within range where she could hit him. "I'm surprised it took this long for her to tell you."

"She only just woke up," Marlene explained, her anger starting to dissipate. "Poor thing, she cried herself to sleep. She still looks awful."

James gestured for Marlene to sit next to him, "I suppose you were planning to come storming in here and demand that I explain myself?"

"That was the plan," Marlene agreed. "But it kind of fell apart when I went into the wrong compartment at first. It was full of terrified first-years who looked at me like I was crazy."

James laughed, "Oh well, I'll tell you what I can. But I can't tell you more than I tried to tell Evans."

"Okay," Marlene replied skeptically. "So, explain away."

"I didn't betray anyone, there was no alternative. I couldn't do anything but tell her where to find Sirius."

"Why?" Marlene asked, wondering how James Potter, the king of loopholes and rule breaking, could find no alternative to anything.

"I can't tell you that." James informed her. "But you have to believe me."

"What do you mean you can't tell me?" Marlene countered confusedly. "Why not?"

"He can't tell you because he's protecting me," Sirius spoke up softly from the corner of the compartment.

"Sirius, I have no idea what you are talking about!" Marlene exclaimed, looking from James to Sirius and back again.

"Sirius, you don't have to do this," James protested before Sirius could clarify his strange response to Marlene's questions.

"I know I don't have to, but I want to and I'm going to," Sirius replied, taking a deep breath. "It all started with Mum beating me. I managed to get away before she did any permanent damage and I showed up at James' house early one morning."

James snorted, "He showed up very early. You're lucky I'm so passionate about Quidditch and was out practicing."

"Passionate? Yeah right! More like obsessed!" Remus muttered.

"What?" James asked as he turned to Remus.

"Oh, nothing," Remus replied, not wanting to be the one who pushed James over the edge.

"Anyways," Sirius continued, "I asked James not to tell his mum who had beaten me, because if she were to turn my mum in to WCAPP, things would get much, much worse for me. And what kid turns his own Mum in anyway? So James took me to Evans' house where I stayed for a while. Then Mum started to look for me."

Sirius swallowed and struggled to continue, finding it hard to continue to tell the tale.

"Do you want me to tell her mate?" James asked and Sirius waved for James to take the story. "All right here's what happened:

**Visit with Mrs. Black: JAMES' POV**

I was just about to leave to go and visit Sirius and Evans when there was a loud banging on the door.

"James, get the door before you go!" Mum called from upstairs.

I, of course, considered pretending that I hadn't heard her and leaving through the Floo Network anyway. But she put a stop to that thought.

"And don't even think about ignoring me! I know you haven't left yet!"

"Darn, that woman's good," I muttered as I headed out of the entrance hall for our travel fireplace and walked to the front door.

Just as I reached the door the constant banging stopped. I hoped that whoever it was had decided that nobody was home and left, but there was no such luck. The door came flying open with a blast of magic and in stomped Mrs. Black.

"Good morning Mrs. Black, you needn't have done that," I said politely (At this point in James' story the others in the compartment snorted disbelievingly about the 'politely'). "I was about to open that."

"Don't you give me any of your sweet talking, you brat!" Mrs. Black bellowed at me. "WHERE'S MY SON?"

"I'm afraid that I don't have any idea," I replied, in my normal melodious tones. ("That means sweet, Peter," James added helpfully, seeing his friend's confusion)

"I KNOW THAT YOU KNOW THAT I KNOW YOU KNOW WHERE HE IS!" Mrs. Black shrieked. "NOW WHERE IS HE!"

At this point I tried to politely urge Mrs. Black out the door while assuring her soothingly that I would let her know where he was as soon as I found out. For some reason the woman didn't seem to believe me and resisted my attempts to get her outside so I could lock the door and not open it again. So, I began to push her out of my home. (Here the compartment burst into laughter at the thought of James pushing the irate Mrs. Black out of Potter Manor)

She didn't seem to enjoy the pushing so much. In fact, I'd say it made her the slightest bit angry. (More laughter from the compartment). But suddenly she spun around and pulled her wand on me. (The laughter stopped and the compartment went absolutely silent. "What happened?" Marlene whispered.)

"TELL ME WHERE MY SON IS!" Mrs. Black roared as I struggled to free myself from her grasp, which was an impossible feat.

"I don't know!" I shouted, keeping my calm outer shell in tact while on the verge of panic inside. ("Wow, James Potter just admitted he was scared!" Marlene gasped theatrically. "I never thought I'd see this day!")

"Don't lie to me, blood-traitor!" The irate mother growled. "Tell me where he is or I'll make you tell me."

"I don't know!" I cried bravely. "And even if I did, I wouldn't tell the likes of you!" ("Is he telling a fairytale?" Remus asked. "Or is he simply making himself look good?)

**Back to Normal POV**

"And with that Mrs. Black did something that would get her in more trouble than she would have been in with WCAPP," James finished lamely.

"WHAT!" Marlene bellowed. "James Potter, you have to finish the story!"

"It's not something I can tell!" James protested. "Nobody can know!"

"Sirius, what is it?" Marlene turned to face Sirius who stood shaking his head.

"Marlene, it's best if you don't know. But now you understand why James didn't tell Lily the entire story. It wasn't his place to tell," Remus told the Gryffindor soothingly.

"Do you know what she did?" Marlene whirled to face Remus. "What about Peter, does he know?"

"Marlene, the Marauders don't keep secrets from each other, just from non-Marauders," James sighed. "They both know."

"And you don't trust me? Is that why you won't tell me?" Marlene demanded.

"NO!" Sirius shouted, causing Marlene and everyone else to jump, and then he continued in softer tones. "Marlene, I'd trust you with my life."

"We all would," Remus cut in as the other two nodded.

"But this is something that you and the other girls are better off not knowing. You have to trust our judgment," Sirius finished.

Marlene, deflated, sat back down and sighed, "I'd trust you guys with my life, so I have to trust you with this. I'll do my best to talk Lily around to forgiving you, James. But that is one stubborn redhead."

"Thanks. Marlene," James said as the spunky Gryffindor left the compartment. Once she was gone he muttered, "But I doubt that it will make much difference at all."

"Don't worry about it James," Remus clapped his friend on the shoulder, "None of the girls would take too kindly to knowing that you were hit with the Imperious Curse."

"Remus is right," Sirius added, "Lily would turn Mum in to WCAP in a heartbeat if she thought it would keep us from getting hurt."

"I know, but I hate for her to be mad at me," James sighed.

"Everything will turn out all right," Peter squeaked reassuringly, "You'll see!"

"Always the optimist, eh Pete," James replied, but he couldn't help grinning at his friend's confidence in fairy tale endings.

* * *

"Lily, why can't you trust James?" Marlene asked that night in the second-year girls' dormitory. "Why won't you trust my judgment?"

"Marlene, I'd trust you with the lives of all my friends and family if need be because you've never given me a reason otherwise. But Potter has lied before. Besides, we decided last year that he didn't really like me," Lily replied as she hung her infamous list beside her bed, a list that had magically expanded over the past couple weeks.

"I know James Potter and he wasn't lying!" Marlene protested.

"Could you tell that he was lying before? I mean just by looking at him, not by knowing him?" Lily asked.

"No, but...," Marlene trailed off.

"I see Lily's point, but I believe James," Emmeline said quietly. "I've seen Mrs. Black before, and I wouldn't put it past her."

"Well," Lily replied, "I wouldn't put it past her either. But I don't trust Potter."

"Of course you don't. Because if you did then you would have to stop being stubborn," Dorcas muttered, luckily for her she muttered so quietly that Lily didn't hear.

"What do you think?" Marlene asked, turning to Alice.

"I'm going to call a Switzerland on this one," Alice announced, peering at Lily's List.

"You're calling a what?" Dorcas asked.

"A Switzerland," Alice repeated.

"Thanks for the clarification," Dorcas grumbled.

"During the Muggle World Wars, Switzerland was a neutral country. They refused to take either side in the war. Alice means that she's going to remain neutral in the discussion," Emmeline explained.

"Exactly," Alice agreed. "Lily, what have you added to that list?"

Lily sighed and read the added item, "'Sustain a horrible Quidditch injury and not play in a game but go to the match and cheer the team on anyway'."

"Lily Marie Evans!" Alice reprimanded. "That's awful!"

Lily shrugged, "It's the only thing left, he grew a bazillion inches over the summer."

The other girls turned away and walked out of the room leaving only Alice and Lily.

"Lils, I'd say that you are not the most popular person right now," Alice sighed. "I do hate it when we all fight."

"Alice, we've never fought before," Lily pointed out.

"Exactly," Alice replied, wringing her hands and walking out the door. "And it was nice. Oh dear, it is so hard to be Switzerland sometimes!"

* * *

"It doesn't look like it went very well," Remus told James as first Marlene, and then Dorcas and Emmeline came into the Common Room after their chat with Lily.

James sighed, "Why would it go well? That would make everything way too simple in my life."

"Sorry James," Marlene said, coming to stand near the Marauders' corner of the Common Room, "I think I just made things worse for all of us."

"Don't tell me you had a fight with her too," Remus sighed and looked at Emmeline since Marlene appeared to be incapable of conversation and Dorcas was in the process of pushing a starry-eyed first-year off of the couch beside James and Sirius.

"It was pretty," Emmeline started and then broke off as she saw Alice come into the Common Room crying, "Oh dear."

Marlene hurried over to Alice and led her over to the group where she sat her down next to Frank who seemed slightly confused as to what was going on. Alice hiccupped and then continued sobbing, drawing strange looks from Gryffindors all over the Common Room. And that included the starry-eyed first-year who was staring dreamily at Sirius.

"Is she drooling?" Sirius asked suddenly, his short attention span failing him at the perfect moment since it distracted Alice.

"I'm not drooling!" Alice wailed as she struggled to get her sobbing under control.

"He wasn't talking about you," Remus told the blubbering girl kindly.

"Here I think you need this more than I do," Frank told the girl, handing her his handkerchief, "And do stop crying Alice."

Alice took a deep breath to try and calm herself. It worked a little bit and Alice's crying slowly quieted down.

"Does nobody else notice that she's drooling at me!" Sirius exclaimed in growing alarm as the first-year began to advance on him.

Dorcas resumed her efforts to pry the girl from her seat, "I'm working on it Black! Hold your unicorns!"

Peter looked slightly confused, "Where are your unicorns Sirius?"

"I don't have any," Sirius replied, backing away from the girl until he was practically in James' lap.

"Well, then why-"

"It's an expression Pete," Remus explained to the boy, "She didn't mean it literally."

"Argh!" Sirius finally lost it, partly due to the fact that he was now sitting in James' lap, "Get her away!"

There's something about having Sirius bellowing at the top of his lungs into your ear while you're in a daze. That something happens to be the strange power to bring you back to your present surroundings. James suddenly realized what was going on.

"Sirius, get off!" James pushed his friend onto the floor and then dove after him as Dorcas' hold on the girl faltered and the starry-eyed first-year launched herself at James and Sirius.

This sight was just enough to make Alice giggle tentatively. Then the other girls joined in and soon the whole group, and much of the Common Room, was laughing as the two handsome boys ran in terror from the starry-eyed girl.

Sirius tripped and James stumbled quickly back to save him. After yanking his friend from the clutches of a boy-crazy prepubescent, James turned and ran straight into Lily, who had just come down the stairs, knocking them both to the ground.

"Sorry!" James exclaimed, scrambling to his feet and helping the fallen Gryffindor up without even looking at her.

Lily did her best to hold in a snicker that James hadn't even looked at her before apologizing and that Sirius was now hiding under a table in plain sight. Suddenly she couldn't hold it in anymore and let out the laughter, joining the others. James went ghostly white and turned to look at Lily, having recognized her laugh. He swallowed nervously, completely forgetting about the starry-eyed girl chasing him and his best mate.

Lily started to say something and then stopped as she saw Alice's tearstained face over James' shoulder. Grabbing the Gryffindor boy's arm, she dragged him over to her best friend.

"Alice!" Lily exclaimed, "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to make you cry! And I didn't mean anything I said!"

Alice hugged her friend, "It's all right Lily. I know you're terribly upset about your sister. I should have known you didn't mean it."

James eyed the pair warily, almost positive that he was going to get yelled at again. He was so distracted by Lily's appearance that he didn't notice the starry-eyed girl creeping up on him from behind.

"James, look out!" Sirius cried from his hiding spot under the table, "Great, now I'm going to need a new place to hide!"

James whirled around only to be tackled to the ground by the starry-eyed girl and kissed. He struggled to break free but the girl was too strong. Suddenly she was torn free of him by an amused looking Lily.

"As much as I enjoyed that sight," Lily said to the starry-eyed girl, not releasing her hold on the robes that looked as if they had never been worn before, "I'm afraid I have to take Potter from you for a second. But before I let you go, you have to promise me something."

The girl nodded, "Okay, anything, just put me down!"

Lily grinned, "First tell me your name."

"Kristin Harrison," The girl replied, "but people call me Kristi."

"Okay Kristi," Lily began, her grin spreading across her face, "If you promise to leave Potter and black here alone for right now, then you can have them all you want later."

James went white as the girl quickly accepted the offer.

"EVANS! What are you doing?" James hissed as he stood up behind Lily, safely away from Kristi.

"You'll see Potter," Lily whispered back before turning back to the girl, "But you must know that Potter and Black have both sworn off girls as a part of their religion of the month."

Kristi looked skeptical, "What's a 'religion of the month'?"

Remus spoke up from Lily's right, "It's something Lily and I set up for them. James and Sirius both have an interest in the world. So each month we select a religion from a different part of the world and they follow it."

Kristi turned to Remus, still highly suspicious, "What's this month's religion?"

"Well," Lily informed her, not hesitating a single second, "This month they are learning the Schuappa religion from Schauppalappadingdong which is a region in Northern Turkey."

"Oh," Kristi turned away, "So they've sworn off girls. What do they have to do if they break that swear?"

"They've got to kiss a llama and beg for forgiveness from the eternal daughter Allamana," Lily said, matter-of-factly.

Kristi looked disgusted, "You know, I think I'm going to bed."

And with that the girl walked off up the stairs to the girl's dormitory and was instantly followed by a crowd of giggling first-years.

"I don't remember being that bad last year," Lily said in amazement as she stared after the girls, "Do you?"

"You were pretty bad," Sirius commented, retreating from his hiding place under the table, "But never that bad."

"Gee, thanks Sirius," Marlene muttered.

"No problem." Sirius replied, missing Marlene's sarcasm, "Now Evans, do I really have to kiss a llama?"

"No Black, you don't have to kiss a llama," Lily replied, looking at James sadly as he walked away.

"Good because that'd be almost as bad as eating one of Peter's socks!"

"I can't help it if my feet stink!" Peter protested, "It's genetic!"

"Look guys, I'm really sorry." Lily spurted suddenly, "You have to understand, I've had a terrible time these past few weeks. Suddenly I find my head being used for target practice."

The group replied with a chorus of 'we forgive you'.

"Unfortunately, Petunia's aim seems to be improving," Lily muttered, massaging a cut on her head and gazing over at James' back.

"I was wondering what that was," Marlene replied.

Emmeline followed Lily's gaze to see James sitting in the corner with his back to the group. "Go talk to him Lils," she urged, "We all forgave you. Now go and give your biggest apology."

Lily took a deep breath and strode over to James. She sat down beside him and he didn't even look up. She cleared her throat and he didn't even blink.

"James, you have to understand my life hasn't been easy the past couple of weeks. I needed some way to vent my feelings and you happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. You didn't break your promise that you'd do everything you could to help me if I ever needed you. I shouldn't have blown up at you like that. I guess what I'm trying to say is I'm sorry," Lily spoke very rapidly.

James didn't respond, in fact he didn't even seem to realize that she was sitting there.

"James, I just apologized the least you could do is to say something!" Lily exclaimed, nudging the catatonic boy, "James can you even hear me? Are you listening?"

"What's that Evans?" James asked, suddenly coming to his senses, "Did you say something? When did you get here?"

Lily sighed, "I just apologized you freak. What were you doing?"

"I was thinking," James replied, "Wait you apologized to me. **You **apologized to **me? **You **_apologized _**to me? And did you call me a freak."

"Yes, I did."

"Which one?" James asked, surveying the redhead curiously.

"Both you freak."

"Oh."

Lily and James just sat there for a second, neither one saying anything. Then Lily stood up.

"Well, that's all I had to say then. I suppose you have every right to still be mad at me," Lily turned to go.

"Lily!" James exclaimed, "I want to hear all about everything."

"Everything?" Lily asked.

"Everything," James confirmed, "But before you tell me, what is up with the Schuappa religion from Schauppalappadingdong and the eternal daughter Allamana and especially the kissing a llama thing?"

Lily shrugged and plopped back down beside James before beckoning to the others, "I just made it up. But you should thank me Potter, I save you from the clutches of Kristin Harrison."

"I'm eternally grateful." James replied as the other second-years piled in around the two, "Now, I believe you have a story to share."

Sirius plopped down between the friends, "Let's hear it! I love stories! Is it going to have a princess? Those are always the best."

"No Sirius, it's about me and how I got this huge cut on my head," Lily replied, "But it does have a witch, in the Muggle sense of the word."

"Oh!" Sirius exclaimed excitedly as he shoved James off the couch in order to get comfortable, "That's almost as good!"

James slid along the floor in front of the couch and climbed back on it on the other side of Lily. He turned to Marlene who was sitting on his other side, "I do hope she hit her back."

"Oh don't worry Potter," Lily replied, smirking, "I got her even better. Petunia had to return to school sporting two black eyes that she received while I was 'coming to' after I was knocked out. But we'll get to that later. How about we start the story at the beginning?"

And so Lily told the group how she spent her summer, leaving out hardly anything interesting. It was a very long story and when she was done everyone but James had fallen asleep.

"That's rough Lily," James yawned, "I'll tell you about my summer tomorrow. Right now I'm going to bed."

"Do you think we should wake them up?" Lily asked, indicating their sleeping friends.

"Naw," James replied, pointing to Alice sleeping with her head on Frank's shoulder who had his on Remus' shoulder who was drooling on the back of the couch as Emmeline slid onto Dorcas who was kicking Peter repeatedly each time the boy snored, "I don't think we should ruin this little party."

"Night James," Lily yawned, watching as the sleeping Marlene and Sirius both struggled to fill the space the two had just vacated. "I suppose I'll see you in our first class."

"The first class is always the best," James replied, grinning, "Night Lily."

And with that the two Gryffindors parted and went to bed. Both considerably happier than they'd been in weeks.

* * *

**AN Ha, next chapter is what I'm really excited about! You know the whole real falling out is coming. Isn't it sad. They could have been happily together for so much longer if James had just matured faster or whatever. Sigh, I suppose it's like Harry and Ginny, the guy was a little slow on the uptake.**

**We'll get back to the list soon. I just hope I don't completely forget about it in the storyline!**

**Review!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**


	11. Chapter 11: We've been WHAT?

**AN Hey guys! Sorry, this is going to be my last update for a week, I'm going to the beach in about 30 minutes. Anyways, I hope you enjoy! I'm looking forward to a bazillion reviews when I get back!**

* * *

"This has got to be the worst day of classes ever!" Dorcas moaned as she and the other second-year Gryffindor girls walked to their first class of the day, double Potions.

"I know!" Marlene exclaimed. "Not only do we have double Potions, but we also have History of Magic!"

"But then we've got Defense Against the Dark Arts," Emmeline pointed out, she was always the optimistic one.

"Professor Longhorn isn't too bad," Lily agreed.

"Someone with his looks," Alice replied, "can't ever be too bad."

"Did my ears deceive me or was Alice just commenting on the exceptional good looks of our Defense professor?" Sirius asked as he and the other Marauders appeared out of nowhere from behind a tapestry.

"Perhaps she hasn't noticed that she is frequently in the company of a very good looking Gryffindor," James added.

"Oh why thank you James, I think you're quite good looking yourself." Sirius said, running a hand through his already messy hair.

"Don't be stupid, Sirius. I was talking about Frank. But thanks anyways. I am rather dashing, aren't I?"

"Don't you go getting a fat head, Potter," Lily warned teasingly.

"Or I might give you a fat lip," Dorcas seconded.

"No need to get feisty girls!" James soothed. "Just think, I wouldn't look half as good if you marred my beauty by giving me a fat lip!"

Lily shook her head and opened the door to the dungeons, "We'd better get going. You know we don't want to be late for Slughorn's class."

"You could walk in during the last five minutes of class and he'd just laugh and say, 'A little late aren't we Miss Evans?'" Peter whined.

"I could not!" Lily exclaimed. "I'd get detention just like the rest of you would!"

"You wouldn't get detention," James replied. "And neither would Remus. You're both smart enough that he likes you."

"And what about you and Sirius?" Lily argued. "You're both as smart, if not smarter than me!"

"Ah," Remus sighed reflectively, "but they make too much trouble. Slughorn prefers us quiet geniuses."

"So modest aren't we Remus?" Sirius mumbled sarcastically. "I bet that neither one of you would skip class and walk in during the last five minutes."

"How much do you want to bet?" Remus asked.

"Remus!" Lily exclaimed in disbelief. "I am not skipping Potions!"

"Why not? You're brilliant at Potions and it wouldn't hurt you in the least. Besides James would get you caught up and I need the money," Remus told her, half begging.

Lily sighed, "How much Sirius?"

"I've got five sickles!" Dorcas exclaimed.

"Three sickles and five knuts!" Marlene said, examining her pocket change.

"I haven't got more than a knut," Alice sighed.

"I've got ten sickles," James called.

"Two knuts and a piece of pocket fuzz!" Peter squeaked.

"Erm, I've only got three sickles and five knuts," Emmeline announced, counting her pocket contents carefully.

"So with my four sickles, that makes...," Sirius thought for a second, "twenty-seven sickles, thirteen knuts, and a piece of pocket fuzz."

Lily looked to Remus, "What do you think?"

Remus frowned, "That's practically pocket change. I don't know."

"It _is_ pocket change," James replied. "But how about I throw in three more sickles to make is an even thirty? And I'll also take one of you for a ride on my broomstick. I just got a new one that I haven't tried yet. We'll be the first on it."

"What do you think Lily?" Remus asked. "You can have the broom ride."

Lily thought for a minute, "Throw in a trip with everyone to the Room of Requirement and a movie of Remus and my choosing and you got a deal."

"Done!" Sirius shouted. He spit on his hand and offered it to Lily who looked repulsed by the gesture.

"Erm," Lily muttered. Then she shrugged and spit on her own hand, "It's a deal Mr. Black!"

The two shook hands and then wiped their hands off, Lily on the hem of her robes and Sirius on James' shoulder.

"You'd better get to class or you'll be late," Lily warned. "Let's go Remus. We can't stand in the hallway the entire class period. We'll get caught."

"Don't forget," Marlene called over her shoulder. "This is DOUBLE Potions! It's twice as long!"

Lily and Remus waved as the group departed and then turned toward each other.

"So, where to now?" Lily asked.

"How about the kitchens?" Remus replied. "Nobody knows about the kitchens."

"And if we run into any teachers we'll just say that I burnt my hand in Potions and you were taking me to the Hospital Wing."

"Good plan," Remus replied. "Let's go."

And with that the two went off toward the kitchens, Lily pretending to nurse her hand 'just in case'.

* * *

"Any minute now!" Dorcas hissed excitedly to her Potions partner, Sirius. "Any minute Lily and Remus will walk through that door."

"What if they _do_ get detention?" Sirius asked.

"They'll still have the money," Dorcas shrugged. "Besides, Lily will never shut up about how she was right."

**Across the classroom**

"Hey, Prewett," James hissed to Alice. "How much time left in class?"

"Exactly five minutes, thirty seconds," Alice replied. "Do you think they'll make it?"

"Probably, but keep an eye on that time," James suggested. "If they come in within the next thirty seconds, then we won't have to give them their money."

"That's a tiny loophole James!" Alice exclaimed.

"Yes, but it's a tiny loophole that lets me keep thirteen sickles!" James grinned.

Just then the door opened and a disheveled looking Lily and Remus walked into class.

"A little late, aren't we Miss Evans? Mr. Lupin?" Professor Slughorn laughed.

"Sorry we're late professor," Remus said, smirking at Lily. "We, erm, lost track of time."

"Ah, well don't let it happen again," Professor Slughorn grinned at the pair and went back to checking people's potions.

"Fix your tie, Remus," Lily giggled as she tamed her disheveled appearance before sitting down at the table with James and Alice.

Remus smirked at her and obliged as he also sat down at the table.

"Remus, you didn't– with Lily– did you?" James hissed.

"Of course not, James," Remus consoled. "We had to give Slughorn some reason that we were late. I wouldn't do anything with Lily. Especially knowing how you feel about her."

"Good," James sat back and then turned to Alice. "Time?"

Alice smiled sweetly, "four minutes, forty-five seconds."

"Damn!" James swore. "There goes thirteen sickles. You'd better pick a good movie, Evans."

Lily just smirked at him, "Oh, I've picked a wonderful movie. It's guaranteed to make you cry."

James moaned, "Fine, I'll see one of you at 7:00 at the Quidditch Pitch."

"Lily's going," Remus told James quickly. "I'm not feeling my best."

James nodded understandingly, "7:00 don't be late."

"I'm never late," Lily replied, looking suspiciously at the pair of Marauders. "Unless I'm getting paid to be."

At that comment the bell rang and the Gryffindors trooped off to lunch, not looking forward to the afternoon's classes.

* * *

"So, ready for that broom ride?" James asked Lily as she entered the pitch wearing a pair of Muggle jeans, a green tank top and emerald jacket.

"Define 'ready'," Lily replied nervously. "You said you've never ridden this broom before?"

"That's right," James replied, reveling in the idea that he might get to hold the nervous Lily a little tighter than he otherwise would be permitted.

"And you're sure it's safe? Nobody's hexed it or anything?"

"Lily Evans, if I didn't know you better I'd say you were scared!" James laughed, teasing the girl.

"I most certainly am not!" Lily exclaimed indignantly. "I'm just a bit… well, I'm just a bit concerned is all."

"You're scared!" James let out a bark of laughter. "I never thought I'd see the day when Lily Evans was scared."

"It's not as if I haven't flown before," Lily muttered. "You're forgetting our first flying lesson!"

"Oh, but then you were playing hero. You didn't have time to be scared. If you're not scared then prove it to me. Get on my broom and fly around the pitch by yourself."

"Fine," Lily stuck out her hand to take the broom. "Give it here."

"I was only teasing!" James protested, whipping the broom out of the girl's reach. "I haven't even ridden it yet!"

"Well, you should have thought about that before you challenged my bravery," Lily retorted, taking the broom from James.

"Don't crash!" James exclaimed as the girl mounted the broom, took a deep breath, and kicked hard off the ground.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Potter," Lily replied sarcastically.

"Anytime Lils!" James replied laughing as the girl soared gracefully around the pitch.

"James Potter, why is the broom vibrating?" Lily called in alarm.

"Its fine, Lily. It's only the wind." James replied.

"No, it's getting worse!" Lily's distress mounted.

"Okay, Lils, listen to me," James instructed loudly as the broom began to buck. "Come slowly towards the ground and land it."

The broom jumped upwards when Lily directed it down and James began to get nervous. Something was definitely not right.

"James!" Lily's use of James' first name displayed her terror.

"Okay, I know Lily!" James called back, fighting to keep his voice calm because he knew Lily would panic if he did. "I'm going to go and get another broom and come get you. Hold it steady until I get up there."

"Don't leave me, James!" Lily screamed in terror and James instantly knew that he shouldn't have told the red-head his plan.

"I'll be right back, Lils!" James insisted as he started to walk quickly towards the locker rooms. "What happened to 'just a bit concerned is all'?"

"'Just a bit concerned'?" Lily swallowed. "Yes, that's right, I'm not scared, definitely not. 'I'm 'just a bit concerned is all'."

James hurried to grab a broom and sprinted back out. As soon as he reached the pitch he jumped on the broom and kicked harder off the ground than he had ever done. He zoomed towards Lily whose broom got wilder as he neared and then soared away just as fast.

"James, I'm not 'just a bit concerned' anymore!" Lily wailed. "Now I'm terrified! Get me off of this broom and I swear I'll never get on another one as long as I live!"

"Don't say that, Lily," James called back, he meant the 'never get on another one as long as I live' part but Lily thought he meant the part about being terrified.

"But I am terrified James! Get me down!"

And with that the broom gave one last lurch and flung the desperately clinging Lily off. The broom instantly stilled, but neither party noticed that. Lily had squeezed her eyes tightly shut in anticipation of impact and James was diving faster than ever before to try and catch the falling Lily.

He managed to slow her descent and, although it was unintentional, cushion her landing as she hit him instead of the ground. Both parties groaned and stirred for a minute before feeling unconsciousness descend upon them.

"James?" Lily mumbled grumpily right before passing out. "I'm never getting on a broom by myself again."

"You don't have to Lily," James assured her weakly before he too passed out.

* * *

Lily awoke about ten minutes later and instantly wished she had remained unconscious. A sharp pain accompanied each breath and Lily's head throbbed. The red-head moaned as she tried to bend her right arm and it didn't respond. She rolled awkwardly off whatever lump she was currently lying on and desperately tried to remember anything, even her own name. But that was a task that proved too difficult. She wrestled her aching body into a sitting position and glanced to see what she had been laying on. She gasped at the sight of another person sprawled on the ground.

"Oh, oh no!" Lily gasped in horror. "I hope he isn't dead!"

The person moaned and came to slowly, "Lily?"

"Um, hello," Lily said quietly. "Are you looking for a flower? Because this field appears to be made only grass."

"No, I'm not looking for a flower!" the person exclaimed coming quickly into a sitting position and then wincing. "I'm looking for you, Lils! What's wrong? Are you alright?"

"My head hurts," the girl admitted. "And I think my arm is broken. Wait a second, who are you? Who am I for that matter?"

"Lily, that's not funny," the boy scolded. "It's me, James! James Potter."

"Lily?" the girl pondered for a minute and decided that she liked the sound of the name. "Oh, hello then, Mr. Potter, it's lovely to meet you! Although different circumstances would probably be preferable to the current ones. Where are we? Do I know you?"

"Lily, I told you, this act isn't funny!" James snapped "Stop it!"

"I'm sorry," Lily looked taken aback. "I didn't mean to offend you. I suppose I'll being going now. Could you direct me to a Hospital or some such thing?"

Suddenly comprehension dawned upon the Gryffindor boy, "Lily, you've lost you memory."

"I suppose I have," the girl replied, attempting to stand up and then thinking better of it.

James managed to stand on his second try. And, even though he was definitely the worst off of the two, took control of the situation. He offered his hand to Lily and helped her to her feet.

"I'm going to take you back to the school, but you're going to have to help me," James announced, realizing that he couldn't hold his own weight seeing as how his ankle had swollen to twice its normal size.

"Okay," Lily took James' arm and placed it securely around her shoulders before placing her own slender arm around his waist.

James couldn't help thinking how he wished that this was happening under much different circumstances and that Lily knew who's waist she had her arm around.

* * *

"She'll be alright Mr. Potter," Madame Alexandra, the nurse, informed James as she fixed his three broken ribs and then proceeded to fix his other injuries.

James had insisted that she heal Lily first, even though the girl wasn't as bad off as he was. Madame Alexandra complied with his wishes and the newly healed Lily was sitting on the bed next to James and looking on eagerly as Madame Alexandra fixed his cuts, bruises, broken bones and concussion.

"Will she get her memory back?" James asked, looking at Lily worriedly who grinned back at him.

"I don't mean to worry you, Mr. Potter," The Nurse replied. "But if her memory doesn't come back within the week, it's not going to come back. I'll place you in charge of helping her to remember and watching over her. Come back in a week and let me know what's going on."

James nodded and stood up. Lily copied his action.

"Where are we going?" she asked eagerly.

"Back up to the Gryffindor Common Room," James replied. "Are you feeling better?"

"Oh yes," Lily agreed. "Do you suppose I'll remember anyone?"

"I hope so Lily. I really do."

* * *

"This is weird," Alice observed over breakfast the next morning to Marlene, who nodded her agreement. "This morning Lily hugged James and now the two are inseparable. I know she lost her memory, but you'd think she'd at least cling to one of us girls."

Marlene pondered this point for a second, "Maybe she remembers a ghost of a feeling that she has for James and thinks that will trigger her memory."

"I hope so," Alice sighed. "I want my best friend back. If she doesn't get her memory back then she'll stick with James and the Marauders permanently."

Marlene hugged Alice, "I wouldn't worry about Lily. She's a fighter."

"I know, but I can't help worrying anyway."

A few seats down the table, Lily was talking and laughing with the Marauders. James still wore a worried expression, but he was enjoying this new Lily. It still bothered him that she didn't remember exactly how opposed to him she could be at times. He wanted the real Lily, but supposed that this was a nice temporary substitute.

"You're saying that I stopped you from torturing that prat!" Lily exclaimed. "But it sounds like he deserves to be tortured! I mean, look at him. You'd think they didn't have showers in his dormitory."

"See, James, Lily is really a Marauder at heart!" Sirius cried happily. "She hates Snivellus too!"

Lily giggled, "Is that his real name? Imagine your mother naming you that. That's a probable cause for suicide right there."

Peter found he was less intimidated by this new Lily and was quickly adjusting to her presence. He enjoyed the fact that now everyone explained everything so that Lily would understand.

"I hope she never gets her memory back!" Peter squeaked quietly to Remus.

"I hope she does, just look at poor James," Remus replied. "He can't adjust to this new Lily. He's barely said a word all morning."

Peter nodded proudly, "I suppose we can't all adjust so quickly."

"No, Pete," Remus agreed. "We can't all be like you."

* * *

The teachers all sympathized for Lily; after all she was one of their favorite students. They were also secretly proud of the other Gryffindors, especially James, who all took Lily under their wings and kept her safe while she relearned everything that she had once known on instinct, like when the Slytherins were going to 'accidentally' spill potion on her.

"Sorry Professor," Snape chimed as he got up off the dungeon floor. "I tripped!"

"Oh dear," Professor Slughorn sighed, surveying the now green Lily, "I'll have to whip up an antidote."

James seethed at Snape for the rest of the class and the Slytherins tittered in triumph. As soon as class had gotten out, James followed Snape into the hall.

"What is your problem?" James exploded. "You know Lily's lost her memory! The whole school knows it!"

"I tripped, Potter," Snape sneered.

"I know you didn't! You threw the potion on Lily before you started to fall! Next time, at least make it look like an accident."

James punched Snape in the jaw and Snape responded angrily. They had drawn a crowd of spectators before Lily exited the classroom with Sirius and Alice.

"James, stop!" Lily yelled and James reluctantly pulled himself away. Snape took off down the hall before the eager looking Sirius could have a go with him.

"Sorry, Lily," James replied, wiping the blood off his split lip with the handkerchief Sirius handed him. "It's just that he hit you with that potion on purpose!"

"I know that, James. And I think it was really sweet of you to protect me like that," Lily took that handkerchief and wiped the rest of the blood off, "but I just lost my memory. I'm not a baby. I can take care of myself."

"I know, Lils. I know that you can take care of yourself better than most people, but that still doesn't stop the fact that I want to keep you safe."

Lily smiled at James and he grinned back. His only injury was a split lip, but Snape now sported a bruise on his jaw, a black eye and a very fat lip as well as injured pride.

"Where to next?" Lily asked, hooking her arm through James' and Alice's.

"We're off to Charms, your favorite and best subject," James answered.

"Oh good! Maybe I'll remember something. I hate sitting in class doing nothing. It's so boring."

* * *

The next few days went by relatively uneventfully and soon it was Friday. Lily had been talking with the other girls and Frank when she noticed the Marauders huddled in a corner and whispering to each other. She said goodbye to the group and walked over to their corner unnoticed by the Marauders.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked. "You look so secretive."

"Shh, Lils," James urged. "We're planning something."

"Oh, can I help?"

The Marauders looked at each other, once again well aware of the fact that Lily had lost her memory.

"Lils," James replied tentatively. "You hate pranks. You hate when we pull pranks. You always get mad after we do pull a prank."

"Oh, well I can't remember any of that," Lily thought for a second, "So I don't see why the past should matter."

"If you're sure…" James trailed off.

"This is going to be so cool!" Sirius bellowed suddenly. "Lily Evans is helping us with a prank! She knows all sorts of Charms that we can't pull off!

Lily raised an eyebrow and looked at the floor.

"Sirius," Remus broke the awkward silence and shattered Sirius' bubble of happiness. "Lily doesn't remember any Charms."

"Oh, yeah," Sirius' face fell as realization dawned on him. "Sorry about that Lili-kins!"

"Uh, no problem, Siri-kins?" Lily replied skeptically.

The Marauders laughed and James scooted over to make a place for their new conspirator.

* * *

"Are you sure this is going to work, James?" Remus hissed from his hiding place outside the Slytherin Common Room entrance. "What if Snivellus doesn't come out?"

"He has to come out eventually," James hissed back, grabbing onto Lily's hand to keep her from walking past them. "What took you so long?"

"Sirius had to go to the bathroom," Lily replied as Sirius joined the group crouched behind the statue.

"So, what's that spell again?" Peter asked in a squeaky whisper.

James sighed, "It's Holamora Kajorakk. Try not to forget Pete."

"Right, Holamora Kajorakk, got it!" Peter muttered, committing the spell to his short memory and continuing to mutter it under his breath over and over again.

"Remind me again," Remus hissed a few minutes later. "Why we are waiting for Snape when any person coming out of the Common Room entrance would be equally as efficient."

"Because, my dear Remus," Sirius replied, "if we hit the Common Room while Snape comes out, then the Slytherins will blame him."

"Oh, well how do we know he's going to come out?" Remus asked. "You never told me that part of the plan."

"I dropped a letter where I knew he'd find it," Lily informed him. "Giving details of a secret meeting that you Marauders were holding in an empty classroom. If that doesn't draw him out, nothing will."

"You are brilliant, Lils," James announced and the girl laughed softly.

"It's a gift… and a curse."

"Shh," Sirius hissed. "Here he comes!"

"On three. One, two THREE!" James whispered and the five companions sent a wave of spells into the Slytherins Common Room to wreak their havoc.

"RUN!" Sirius bellowed as irate Slytherins swarmed out of the Common Room like ants from a wrecked anthill.

The four Marauders and Lily took off at a sprint and ran directly into Professor McGonagall.

"What are you four doing?" Professor McGonagall asked directly before noticing Lily. "Or should I say five doing?"

"Erm, nothing Professor," Sirius said charmingly. "But if you don't mind, we're awfully tired and if we could just squeeze past you that would be wonderful."

"Hold on a second Mr. Black. You four– five aren't going to 'squeeze past' anything. Not until I find out what that racket is. Come with me!"

The five looked at each other and sighed before following their Professor.

"Aha," Professor McGonagall said upon discovering the Slytherins milling about in the halls. "Everyone get back into the Common Room, or should I say all Slytherins."

Professor McGonagall wisely rephrased her statement as the five friends tried to sneak off down the dark corridor.

"You four-"

"Five," The group corrected.

"Yes, you five come with me," and with that McGonagall led them to her office and indicated that they should take a seat.

"Now," She said, sitting behind her desk and folding her hands on top of a stack of papers, "I know that you are responsible for the ruckus downstairs. I am also aware that the spells are, in fact, temporary. But what I fail to comprehend is why you've dragged Miss Evans into this. She has not caused any trouble in this school and just because she's lost her memory is no reason for that to change."

Sirius opened his mouth but James cut him off, "It's my fault Professor. Lily asked if she could help us with whatever we were doing and I didn't try to talk her out of it. I'm sorry."

Professor McGonagll sighed, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to give all five of you Friday night detentions for a month. And if even one of you fails to report one week without my explicit excuse, then I will make it the rest of the term. Is that clear?"

They answered with a chorus of dejected 'yes Professor's and she let them go back to their Common Room.

"James?" Lily asked as Sirius and then Remus climbed into the portrait hole.

"Yes Lily?"

"Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Okay," James waved to his friends and followed the red-head into an empty classroom.

"You like me," She stated bluntly as she perched on a desk.

"Erm, yes," James stuttered, taken aback.

"And I like you," The red-head fixed him with her piercing green eyes.

"Erm," James shifted uncomfortably.

"So why don't you ask me out?" Lily demanded.

"Well I have before but you never– I mean, you didn't– Lils, you basically told me to bugger off every time."

"Oh, well, things have changed James. If I don't get my memory back in the next two days, I'll never get it back. I have to start a new life sometime, just in case."

"Oh, well I suppose that makes sense," James wasn't sure he liked where this conversation was going.

"Yes it does," Lily said matter-of-factly. "So are you going to ask me or not."

James decided that he should just take the dive, "Lily, will you go out with me?"

"Of course James," Lily replied smiling and slipping her hand into his. "I thought you'd never ask!"

* * *

Lily awoke, keeping her eyes closed and trying desperately to remember what had happened. She remembered falling from the broom and James trying to catch her and she remembered finding herself on top of James on the ground before passing out. But she was much too comfortable to be on the ground now and she wasn't in any sort of pain so the girl decided that she must be in the Hospital Wing.

But then what was that around her waist. And, although comfortable, the object upon which she lay was too lumpy, even for a bed from the Hospital Wing. She opened her eyes and found herself in the Gryffindor Common Room, lying on a couch with James Potter's arm around her and her head resting firmly on his shoulder.

Lily let out a shriek and jumped over the back of the couch.

"What's wrong Lils?" James asked sleepily sitting up and rubbing his eyes as he peered at her over the back of the couch.

"What are we doing down here?" Lily demanded, picking herself up off the floor.

"You were worried that you wouldn't get your memory back and asked your boyfriend to sit up with you," James replied. "Don't you remember?"

"Boyfriend?" Lily stuttered, confused. "I lost my memory? Where's Alice?"

"Alice? Oh you mean Gideon and Fabians' sister. I suppose she's still asleep."

"What's going on Potter?"

"You don't remember?"

"The last thing I remember, Potter, is falling off that bloody broom!" Lily exclaimed. "So stop being so bloody confusing and explain yourself!"

"Lily!" James jumped off the couch and hugged her, swinging her around in a circle. "You've gotten your memory back!"

"Put me down!" Lily protested loudly. "You mentioned a boyfriend or some such nonsense."

"Lily, we– well we've kind of been dating for two days now," James shifted uncomfortably under the piercing green eyed glare.

"WE'VE BEEN WHAT!" Lily roared and, in the process, woke half of Gryffindor Tower.

James just smiled innocently in return.

"You're telling me that I lose my memory because I fell off of your broom, which by the way you assured me was perfectly safe, and then you start dating me when I can't remember that I don't like you!" Lily's voice had escalated, drawing a very large crowd of sleepy students.

James cowered on the couch and Lily stalked up the stairs to her Dormitory calling back over her shoulder, "We'll discuss this later Potter! Go get dressed and then meet me in the Great Hall!"

Lily slammed the door as she entered the dormitory. The girls all woke up.

"It sounds like Lily's got her memory back," Alice muttered sleepily. Then, realizing what she said hopped out of bed and threw herself on Lily, "Lily's got her memory back!"

The girls all happily squealed over Lily for a second and then Lily broke through the ring of ecstatic girls. She made her way over to her four poster bed, grabbed her clothes and then entered the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

"I guess she found out about James," Alice whispered to the other Gryffindor girls who nodded their agreement.

"It was pretty dumb of him," Marlene agreed. "She couldn't remember past experiences to know why she hadn't said yes to him before."

"Do you think she knows about the detention?" Dorcas asked just as Lily came out of the bathroom.

"What detention?" Lily asked, surveying her friends.

"Uh, nothing," Dorcas replied a little too quickly. "A bunch of people just got detention for a month."

"What did they do?" Lily inquired curiously.

"Uh, I'm sure James will tell you about that when he explains everything else," Marlene covered, none of the girls wanting to be the bearer of bad news to the fiery red-head.

"I'm going to meet him for breakfast in the Great Hall. That way there will be plenty of people to stop me from murdering him," Lily fumed, as she pulled her hair up into a very messy bun, something she only did when she was irritated about something.

"Uh, good luck?" Alice ventured. "I'm going to get ready for class. See you later Lily!"

"Bye," Lily waved to her friends absently, already wondering how she would contain herself if James told her she had done anything stupid with him.

* * *

"Ha, good luck mate," Sirius laughed as James was almost ready to go down to breakfast. "I doubt you've ever seen her as mad as she's going to be!"

"It might not go that badly," Remus said hopefully. "Just don't purposely provoke her. Make sure she knows that you know you were wrong."

"Uh, sure," James replied nervously.

"Don't hit her!" Peter offered helpfully. "Even if she hits you really hard."

"Thanks for the advice Pete," James swallowed and made his way to the door. "If I die and never see any of you again, Sirius you can be my parents honorary son and Remus you can have my owl. Peter, you can have my broom."

Sirius followed James down towards the Common Room and stood on the bottom step yelling, "Move it people, dead man walking!"

The Gryffindors moved out of James' way as James sent Sirius a glare. James received several pats on the back and a few 'good luck mate's before he exited the Common Room via the Portrait Hole. Caleb Parker hurried up to James just before he walked out.

"Potter, you have to refrain from upsetting that Evans girl," the Captain advised. "It never goes well for you, or anyone for that matter."

James attempted a weak grin and a nod of thanks before he made the long walk to the Great Hall.

* * *

Lily sat seething at her breakfast. It was still relatively early and very few people were in the Great Hall yet. She stared at her scrambled eggs murderously, as if they were the cause of all her problems. She speared a sausage with her fork and ripped it in half savagely.

'**_Where is he?_**' Lily thought as she viciously chewed and then swallowed her sausage. '_He is taking forever_!'

"Miss Evans, here is your detention notice," Professor McGonagall said handing Lily a slip of paper. "Please give the others to Misters Potter, Lupin, Pettigrew and Black."

"Detention notice?" Lily echoed.

"Oh, I suppose you've gotten your memory back then. Although that's wonderful news and you weren't yourself but I'm afraid I still have to give you detention. Sorry, Miss Evans," And with that Professor McGonagall made her way up to the staff table.

'_**Oh is that James Potter going to get it!**_' Lily seethed and looked up as the doors to the Great Hall opened to reveal none other than James Potter.

"Hullo," James muttered as he sat across from Lily. "I suppose you'd like to hear the whole story."

"No," Lily snapped. "God, no, I don't want to know everything that happened. Explain about the detention and the dating and any people I may need to apologize to and that's it. Oh and please, for the sake of all things dear in the world, tell me that I didn't do anything stupid with you!"

James' cheeks went red, "Merlin no Lils, nothing like that!"

"Don't call me 'Lils'," Lily snapped viciously.

"Fine, Lil-eeee," James replied, dragging out the second syllable of her name and instantly knowing that he would regret it later, having provoked her like Remus explicitly told him not to.

Lily's eyes flashed, "Tell me about the detention or you'll wish that you had never been born, Potter."

James told her about the detention hurriedly and then went right into the dating. Lily got madder and madder the more he talked and James feared that her eyebrows would push each other right off her face.

Lily held up her hand suddenly and James instantly shut up, "Stop, stop! I don't want to hear any more!"

"Lily, I'm sorry, I was wrong," James apparently had once again said the wrong thing for tears flashed in Lily's eyes, she was so angry.

"You were wrong?" Lily hissed menacingly. "That's a bit of an understatement, don't you think? You got me into a month's worth of detention and asked me out when you knew I had lost my memory and couldn't remember why I had said no in the first place! James Potter you make me sick!"

And with that Lily sprang from her seat and stormed out of the Great Hall to check in with Madam Alexandra in the Hospital Wing.

"My, my dear," The nurse clucked. "You seem to be all worked up. That can not be good for your blood pressure."

"No, but on the bright side perhaps it will kill me."

"Oh, you can't mean that dear. I heard you and that handsome James Potter got together. You must be so excited."

"Oh, I'm making it a point never to talk to him again, or at least not until he grows up!"

"Oh dear, perhaps I should give you a sedative." Madam Alexandra pondered. "You can't let yourself get so worked up dear. You must find an outlet of some sort."

"Yes, an outlet," Lily mulled that thought over. "That's exactly what I need. Thank you Madam Alexandra!"

"Anytime dear, anytime," The nurse replied absently.

* * *

**AN/ Hey guys, hope you liked it, here's a little sneak peek at what's coming up!**

**_Next chapter:_ Quidditch try-outs and, detention, and Lily's outlet and maybe I'll get to the Marauders, but I'm not sure. Erm, anyways look forward to the Marauders map and the start of the Animagus search coming soon!**

**_Reviews:_ Please let me know what you think! I hope the whole 'Lily lost her memory' thing wasn't too overused. Oh and let me know what pranks you think the Marauders should get up to!**

**Thanks for reading guys!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**


	12. Chapter 12: Swimming? In November!

**Hey guys! I really appreciate the reviews and the honesty in them! I really hope that you like this chapter better, oh and for those of you who read my Katie Bell story, look for the sequel coming soon!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"Lily, what are you doing?" Marlene asked giving the red-head a curious glance as the girl threw the contents of her trunk all across the floor of the dormitory.

"Looking for my swimsuit," Lily announced and let out a cry of triumph as she pulled an emerald green halter top with boy shorts out of her trunk.

"Lily," Alice asked concernedly, "you do realize that it's early October and it has suddenly turned very cold outside."

"Yes, of course I realize that," Lily answered from the bathroom as she changed. "I found a charm that will keep me perfectly warm."

"But why are you going swimming?" Marlene asked, confused.

"It's therapeutic," Lily answered. "And I need an outlet. School and Potter are starting to get to me."

"You still aren't talking to him like he's a friend, are you?" Alice sighed, fighting of any sort always bothered her.

"No and I don't plan to. And the way he's responding makes me think that he deserves it. I've only got two more detentions left but he and Sirius have been so obnoxious lately that they've got almost an extra month of Wednesday and Friday night detentions lined up. And McGonagall is threatening to add Monday or Saturday or both if they get another one! Not to mention that yesterday Potter tripped me in the middle of the hallway on purpose."

"How do you know it was on purpose?" Alice asked. "He said it was an accident."

"Yeah, well when you proceed to sticking your foot directly into someone's path with 'hey Sirius, watch this', it's kind of obvious that you tripped them on purpose."

Marlene whistled, "I'm sorry Lily, I didn't know. If I had, I would have said something!"

"It's okay Marlene. I know that you'd have said something," Lily replied as she pulled shorts and a light hoodie over her swimsuit. "Anyone else want to come?"

"Erm, not thanks," Alice replied, glancing out the window. "I think Frank was going to help me with my Herbology homework."

"Alice, that's one of your best subjects!" Lily exclaimed.

"I know," Alice replied, winking. "But Frank doesn't."

The girls laughed.

"Sorry Lily, but I promised Sirius and James that I'd try out for Quidditch today," Marlene smiled apologetically at the girl. "Maybe next time."

"I've always wanted to go swimming while it was cold," Lily commented as she walked out of the door, right past Dorcas and Emmeline who were coming in.

"Where's she going?" Dorcas asked. "She'll freeze!"

"Swimming," Marlene and Alice chorused.

* * *

"Guess what Lily went to do today," Marlene said conversationally to Sirius when James was well out of earshot.

"What?" Sirius asked. "Has she been all nutty like James has?"

"I think she's been worse," Marlene replied confidentially. "She's been in the library constantly for a week and found a charm that will keep you warm no matter how cold it is outside. Right now, she's swimming in the lake."

"She isn't!" Sirius exclaimed. "Its cold out here!"

Marlene shrugged, "She said 'it's therapeutic'. Personally I think she's trying to burn off extra steam so she doesn't throttle anyone. She's had some lovely mood swings lately. You never know what's going to make her scream at you or, worse, start bawling her eyes out."

"Over James?" Sirius asked, gesturing to their friend who was currently playing Chaser for try-outs.

"I think so," Marlene replied. "How's James been? You two have been getting in an awful lot of trouble lately."

"He's spurting off pranks like there's no tomorrow," Sirius informed her. "I think he just wants something to do to keep his mind off Lily. I'll be glad when the detentions are over so that he won't see her outside of classes and such. They always get in these huge spats before the end of detention and by the end all five of us are ready to throttle each other. Remus hasn't been taking it well. Especially since–"

"Since what?" Marlene urged.

"I wasn't supposed to tell anyone, but Remus isn't feeling too well again," Sirius answered, praying that Marlene would believe him and not suspect the real reason, which was that the full moon was approaching.

"Poor Remus," Marlene answered sympathetically. "Oh, look it's our go!"

"Let's show them that we're the best beaters Hogwarts has ever seen!" Sirius cried as the two mounted their brooms and took off for their try-out.

* * *

"Hi Remus," Emmeline said as she joined the sickly looking Gryffindor in the library.

"Oh, hello Emmeline," Remus replied as he glanced up from his book. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, the girls think I came to do homework, but I really wanted to ask you a question."

Remus marked the page and set his book aside, "Go ahead."

"Two days ago James tripped Lily in the hallway." Emmeline started. "We all know it was on purpose, but that just doesn't sound like James. What's going on?"

Remus sighed, "I think James was trying to hurt Lily. He was trying to make her feel as horrible as he felt. What he didn't realize was that Lily feels just as bad as he does, she just doesn't show it."

"Well, by doing that he just ruined his chances of Lily making up with him. Lily was telling us that morning that she was tired and wanted to try and fix things. But after he tripped her, Alice walked into the dormitory after dinner to find her bawling. And yesterday she went swimming."

"But it's cold outside!" Remus exclaimed. "Didn't she freeze?"

"No, apparently she spent the last week looking through books and found a charm that would keep you warm in even the coldest weather. She says 'it's therapeutic'," Emmeline explained. "Lily is miserable and so is James, but even though Lily can forgive stupid mistakes, sometimes very grudgingly mind you, she can't forgive him publicly humiliating her on purpose. She's much too proud."

Remus put his head in his hands, "I don't think it'd be a good idea to tell James all of this. He might go and kill himself. Next week Quidditch starts. Hopefully he'll cool off with something else to think about."

"I hope so," Emmeline replied, standing up to leave. "I just wanted to know what was going on with him. Thanks Remus."

"No problem, Em," Remus waved to the girl and she left the library thinking back on the discussion.

* * *

"It's Halloween next Friday!" Lily cried suddenly one evening as the girls were going back up to Gryffindor Tower.

"And tonight is your last detention!" Alice added excitedly.

"I know," Lily replied happily. "Isn't it great?"

At the mention of Halloween the rather dejected girls' spirits flew. None of them had been their usual bright selves since James had tripped Lily that day and then spilt his Pumpkin Juice on her at breakfast the next week. Tensions were running high, but things had eased slightly as Marlene, James and Sirius started Quidditch. Still, the girls had all agreed that swimming had turned out to be therapeutic and whenever something went wrong they headed up to the dormitory to change and then down to the lake to swim.

"What time is it?" Lily asked as they neared the Portrait Hole.

"Erm, it's 6:50," Alice replied, "Oh Lily, you'd better run!"

Lily took off at a run in the direction of Professor McGonagall's office and walked in the door not a second too soon.

"There's Miss Evans," Professor McGonagall said. "But where are Mr. Potter and Mr. Black?"

"They aren't here?" Lily asked incredulously.

"No, Miss Evans, they're not here. And I'm afraid that I'm going to be forced to follow through on my decision to give you all another month of detention if one of you missed it. It should be two months, since two students are missing, but I'll only give you one. You will have detention every Friday night until the month is up."

"But Professor," Lily started, "next week is Halloween."

"Yes, Miss Evans, it is. And you should have thought of that before you went around wreaking havoc on the school. You will be in here serving detention instead of at the feast. Now I'll be back in an hour, I suppose you remember what to do."

Lily, Remus, and Peter nodded sullenly and Professor McGonagall left the room.

"I am going to kill that James Potter. And if he's lucky I won't bother with Sirius Black," Lily growled. "Where are they? I know you both know."

"They're at Quidditch," Peter squeaked. "Their first match is tomorrow."

Lily let out a cry of frustration and set to work making Halloween decorations without magic for the feast she would be unable to attend.

* * *

"I'm going swimming!" Lily said as she threw open the door to the girl's dormitory. "Anyone else want to come?"

"What happened?" Alice asked as all the girls got into their swimsuits.

"Potter and Black didn't show up for detention and now I have another month of Friday night detention!"

"Hi girls," Marlene called cheerfully. "Practice was brilliant. We're going to be awesome at tomorrow's match."

"Lovely," Lily replied sarcastically.

"You sound bitter, what's wrong?" Marlene looked around the room at the girls in their swimsuits. "Oh no, not again!"

"Oh yes again," Lily pulled her jacket on roughly. "Since they were at Quidditch instead of detention, now we all have another month of Friday night detention."

"But next Friday is Halloween," Alice said suddenly.

"Eat some pumpkin pie for me at the feast, because I'm not going."

The girls gasped and Marlene dropped her stuff on the floor and changed into her swimsuit quickly, knowing that swimming was the only way Lily could burn off steam and keep from throttling James Potter and Sirius Black.

* * *

"How was the feast?" Lily asked sullenly as she dragged her feet into the Common Room. "The leftovers on dirty plates sure looked wonderful."

"You had to wash all of those dishes?" Alice cried.

Lily nodded, "Yep, I had to wash all of them. And let me tell you Potter, Black, and Pettigrew would never be allowed to wash dishes in the food industry."

The other girls laughed as Lily changed into her pajamas, exhausted.

"I'm going to bed. See you in the morning," Lily announced as she crawled into her four poster bed and drew the curtains around her.

"Night, Lily!" The Gryffindor girls chorused.

Just as Lily was drifting off, there was a loud tapping at the window. Lily heard the creak of the window opening and had just decided to ignore it and go back to sleep when Emmeline called her name.

"Lily, get up! It's a letter for you!" Emmeline said, throwing back the curtains on Lily's bed and tugging on her arm.

"I'll read it in the morning," Lily muttered sleepily. "Go away."

"Lily," Alice said sternly. "Get up right now! I know you'd want to read this right away."

Lily rolled herself out of bed with great effort and took the letter from Marlene's hands. She opened it and scanned it, then stopped and read it again, slower.

"It's from Dumbledore," Lily exclaimed, all thoughts of sleep gone from her head,."He's excusing me from the rest of my detentions due to the fact that I had no way of judging what I would normally do and haven't missed a detention!"

"That's wonderful, Lily!" Alice gave her friend a hug.

"Oh, and he also says that he thinks it's wonderful that we like to get our exercise, but he suggests we cut down on the nighttime swimming because the Giant Squid usually feeds at night. He also says that he always enjoyed a rope swing that used to be at the north side of the lake."

"A rope swing," Alice exclaimed. "What a wonderful idea!"

"How about we discuss it in the morning," Lily suggested, suddenly remembering that she was tired. "Right now I just want to go to sleep."

The other girls agreed and they all went to sleep, thinking of rope swings and the Giant Squid.

* * *

It was nearing Christmas and the Marauders were sitting in History of Magic listening to the old and feeble Professor Binns. Or rather pretending to listen. What they were really doing was discussing the finer points of the past Quidditch match and Gryffindors' outstanding victory over Ravenclaw.

"I didn't think that Davis was ever going to catch that snitch," James commented, a little too loudly for Lily Evans sent him a warning look and Professor Bins, usually unaware of the antics of his class, even paused for a second.

"Neither did I mate," Sirius agreed, a little quieter once the decrepit professor had continued talking.

"Well, I knew he-" Peter started to say, but James cut him off.

"Shh, Pete," James listened to Professor Binns intently.

The old professor was talking about the founding of Hogwarts and the possibility of a secret chamber built by Slytherin. James and Sirius turned to grin at each other and even Peter brightened.

"Oh no," Remus whispered to his friends. "They've tried dozens of times to find the Chamber of Secrets! They didn't even find a trace of a secret broom cupboard, let alone an expansive chamber!"

"Well," Sirius replied confidently, puffing out his chest, "they didn't have the Marauders to help them look."

"You're not going to find anything," Remus protested just as the bell rang, signaling the end of class. "Besides, I thought you were trying to figure out how to become animagi."

"We'll do that over Christmas," Sirius replied for the four were all staying at Hogwarts over Christmas break. "That way nobody else will be around."

"It's going to take a while," Remus warned.

"We know that, Remus, but that's why we want to find this Chamber of Secrets. That way we can have someplace to brew the potion where nobody can find us," James explained.

"Why don't we just use the Room of Requirement?" Remus asked futilely.

"It won't hurt anything to look," Peter pointed out. "Will it?"

"I suppose not," Remus admitted defeat. "We can start looking after detention tonight."

"Why can't we skip detention?" Sirius whined.

"I'll look for the Chamber of Secrets with you, but I absolutely draw the line at skipping detention!" Remus exclaimed. "Lily would kill us all!"

"Oh, don't worry about Evans," James told his friends darkly. "I heard her talking with Prewett about how Dumbledore let her out of detention. Apparently they're busy building a rope swing down at the lake."

"Rope swing!" Peter exclaimed squeakily. "It's the middle of November!"

"They're witches, Pete," Sirius explained, reveling in the fact that he could, for once, explain something. "Evans found a charm that keeps them warm no matter how cold it gets. I heard from Marlene that they want to try swimming when it's snowing."

"Oh," Peter thought for a second. "That would be weird."

The other Marauders agreed and walked off to dinner discussing plans for searching.

* * *

"I'm still not skipping detention!" Remus cried as they walked into the Great Hall. James and Sirius just rolled their eyes.

"I can't believe we're skipping detention to look for a Chamber of Secrets that probably doesn't exist!" Remus hissed as the boys crept through the dungeons on their thorough search of the castle.

"Hey," James said slowly, coming to an abrupt stop and causing everyone else to run into the back of him. "What if, while we're exploring Hogwarts, we put everything we find into a map?"

"Yeah," Sirius agreed eagerly as he hopped up off the floor and knocked Peter back down onto Remus in the process. "And it could show passwords to secret passages and where everyone is in the castle!"

"And we could call it the Marauders' Map!" Peter added excitedly as he scrambled off the dirty floor.

"And we can spend years and years trying to find the charms to make it!" Remus exclaimed sarcastically as he stood and brushed dirt off his robes.

"Yeah!" Sirius cried, completely missing the sarcasm.

"Way to be optimistic, Remus," James' voice dripped sarcasm.

"Anytime," the boy grinned wolfishly.

"But it won't take that long if you were to ask Evans for help," James said suddenly.

"Excuse me?" Remus' eyes bulged. "You did not just suggest that I ask Lily Evans for help in making the Marauders' Map!"

"Yes, but you have to make it sound like some experiment for charms or something," James thought for a second. "Do you think she'd buy that?"

"I think so," Sirius answered. "She's smart and Remus is smart. That's what smart people do, right? They experiment?"

"I wouldn't know," Peter put in. "Maybe it would work."

"No way would it work!" Remus exclaimed. "There's no way she'd buy it."

"Well, perhaps if you make it sound like you are making a map for first years that would show their way to classes until they got used to the castle," James suggested. "She'd buy that! Evans is a sucker for helping others."

Remus sighed, "I don't know guys."

"Come on, Remus!" Sirius urged.

"I know you can do it, mate," James added.

"At least give it a try, Remus!" Peter begged.

"Oh all right," Remus sighed again. "I suppose it's worth a shot. But don't blame me if she comes around later wanting to know how the project is going."

"That's alright," James replied. "We'll make two. One will have all the passages and passwords and people and such and the other will just have the normal corridors. It's brilliant!"

And with that the Marauders trooped off to head back to the Common Room and sent Remus to talk to Lily.

* * *

"Erm, hi Lily," Remus said, sitting down in the chair next to her.

"Hi Remus," Lily replied, smiling as she glanced up from her Charms essay. "What are you up to?"

"What makes you think I'm up to something?" Remus asked nervously, pulling at his collar.

"Well, first of all," the red-head pointed to the Marauders peering down the stairs. "They're making it a little too obvious that you're up to something. And second of all, you're trying to smooth your already-straight hair down like you always do when you're nervous."

"Oh," Remus looked dumbfounded.

"Yeah, so what are you up to?" Lily raised an eyebrow and stared at the boy quizzically.

"Erm, well, I wanted to ask for your help."

"Yes?"

"I wanted to make a map for next years first-years that would show them all the passages through the castle to their classes so that they wouldn't get lost," Remus explained, getting less nervous the more he talked. "I needed help to find some of the charms that I'll need and the other Marauders wanted to make sure that I didn't chicken out of getting some help."

"Is that all?" Lily laughed. "I thought for sure you'd want me to tell you the best way to charm Snape's robes fluorescent pink or something. Of course I'll help."

Remus let out a breath that he didn't even realize he had been holding, "Okay, if you'll just tell me where might be a good place to look, that would be wonderful."

Lily wrote down a few titles of library books she had come across in her studies and handed the list to Remus, "Let me know if you need any help. Although I'm sure Black and Potter will be able to help you with the actual charm work."

"Thanks Lily!" Remus gave the girl a smile before joining his friends on the stairs to the boy's dorms.

Lily watched their reflections in the mirror above the fireplace, amused at their congratulatory pats on the back and carrying on. She was sure that something else was going on in their heads, but since she hadn't been the butt of any recent pranks, she wasn't overly worried. Besides, they hadn't started holding hushed conferences in the Common Room yet, or worse, been in their dormitory for hours on end. Those hushed conversations were always the immediate precedent to any pranks the Marauders pulled. Many Gryffindors had learned to lie low for up to a week after the Marauders hadn't caused at least one disruption in Gryffindor Tower in a night.

Lily shook her head and grinned to herself at her own tiny prank she had just pulled. Then she got back to her Charms essay.

* * *

**Hmm, what did Lily do? I guess we'll have to wait and see! If you review, I'll update sooner! And please, keep being honest in your reviews!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**


	13. Chapter 13: Do Flobberworms fly?

**AN now, don't go getting all upset because Lily isn't some huge prankster. I told you it was a little prank. There won't be any swimming in jello or cauldron tanks, just so you know. But you can read that in some of my other stories if you want to.**

**But anyways, just read!**

* * *

"What do you mean all those books were checked out?" Sirius exclaimed. "Nobody likes to read that much!"

"They might not all be checked out to the same person, Sirius," Remus replied, checking the shelf again.

James turned his attention to the other people in the library at the time. There was the usual horde of first and second years 'cleverly' (or so they thought) stalking Sirius headed up by none other than Kristi Harrison. Then there were some fifth years sitting in the corner chatting quietly as they worked on their abundant homework. Finally James' gaze came to rest on Lily Evans and Emmeline Vance. He saw Lily glance at them once and was sure that she had grinned mischievously at them.

"Evans has them," James said suddenly. He surprised everyone, including himself, for he wasn't quite sure how he knew for sure that she had the books.

"What?" Sirius asked confused.

"Evans has the books," James repeated, a grin starting to spread across his face. "I'll bet you anything that she has them, all of them."

Remus looked over at Lily who was discussing her Transfiguration essay with Emmeline quietly. Then he looked at the list she had given him and back at the shelf.

"I suppose we'd best go talk to her," Remus sighed.

"We?" Sirius asked. "It's damaging enough to my reputation just to be seen in the library, let alone for me to go talk leisurely while I do it!"

"You three are coming with me or I'm not going," Remus stated firmly.

James ran a hand through his hair nervously, "I suppose we'd better get this over with then. You'd better do the talking."

"Fine," Remus replied and walked over to the girls with the other three trailing after him. Sirius leisurely, James nervously, and Peter with great enthusiasm like he did everything.

"Hi Remus," the girls chorused as Remus sat down at the table with them.

"Hi Lily, Em," Remus replied, smiling.

James walked up to the table and sat down in the last chair, "Alright there, Evans? Emmeline?"

"Potter," Lily nodded curtly.

"Hi James," Emmeline smiled warmly at the four. "I'm not used to seeing you in the library. And I doubt Sirius has ever been here before."

"That's not true!" Sirius exclaimed indignantly. "I came in here once—"

"Or twice," James put in.

"Actually it was closer to fifteen," Remus corrected.

"–for detention," Sirius finished, giving his two friends a piercing look and pushing James out of the chair before lounging in it himself. "We're all comedians, aren't we?"

The girls tried their best to restrain their laughter as the embarrassed James scrambled off the floor and attempted to smack Sirius in the back of the head (I say attempted because Sirius anticipated it and ducked) but a grin broke out onto both girls' faces.

"Anyways," Remus continued, ignoring Peter's snorts of laughter the other marauders antics, "I know about the books, Lily."

"How did you figure it out so fast? I was looking forward to you four having to root around for a bit before figuring it out," Lily grinned.

"Well," Remus started and then stopped and looked at James. "How did you figure it out?"

James threw Sirius another glare and ran his hand through his hair nervously before flashing his trademark Potter smile, "Who else in this school is a big enough bookworm to have all of those Charms books? Well, excluding Remus of course."

James dodged a retaliatory punch from Remus and grinned (accompanied with hand running through hair) again. Lily just looked rather irritated.

"Anyways," Remus turned back to the girls. "Can you get me those books Lily? Or am I going to have to make a deal with you or something?"

Lily shook her head and pulled them out of her bag, "No, you can have them. Potter already ruined any fun I was going to have with them."

"Thanks Lily," Remus took the books and stood up. "Hey, Sirius, we're going."

"Huh, what?" Sirius asked, startled at being woken from his doze.

"We're going," Remus repeated. "See you girls later."

"Bye Remus," Emmeline replied, smiling at the Gryffindor.

"Bye," Lily said, turning back to her essay.

And with a "See you around Evans," from James, which was accompanied by the trademark smile and hand through hair, they departed as Lily said, "See you, Potter," without even looking up from her essay.

"What's up with her?" James asked sulkily as the Marauders left the library.

"I suppose she didn't appreciate the 'bookworm' comment," Remus replied, thrusting a book into James' hands and another into Sirius'. "You're the ones who wanted these."

Sirius dropped the book with a dramatic cry of, "Ahh! It burns!"

Remus rolled his eyes and picked the book up off the ground as the other two broke into laughter, "Sorry Sirius. I had forgotten you were allergic to books."

"Do you think McGonagall would believe that one?" Sirius asked. "Maybe I could use it to get out of Detention one night."

"Do flobberworms fly?" Remus retorted.

"I don't think so," Sirius answered, as usual missing the other boy's sarcasm.

Remus let out a grunt of frustration.

"Don't feel bad Sirius," Peter piped up. "I didn't think that flobberworms flew either."

* * *

"Lily what does that say on your list?" Alice asked suspiciously, pointing to the piece of forgotten parchment tacked to the wall.

"Erm, number 6, refer to Alice Prewett as something other than 'Gideon and Fabian's sister' or the ever popular 'Prewett' and number 7, stop messing up his already messy hair all the time so that it looks like he's just stepped off his broomstick." Lily replied guiltily.

"Lily!" Alice exclaimed, trying to hide the fact that she was extremely touched that Lily would feel so strongly about James learning her name. "You have to be the only girl in the entire school who doesn't like James' hair being as messy as it is!"

"Yeah, that's me," Lily teased. "I'm a rebel. Now let's go to breakfast."

* * *

"Remind me to go back to that– that–" Sirius struggled to find the word.

"Kitchen?" James suggested.

"No, the place with the books. It's great for taking naps!"

"I believe the word you are looking for is 'library'," Remus commented as he crossed to his trunk and began packing.

"Where are you going this time?" Sirius asked. "That way we know what to tell people."

"My cousin is getting married, for the fifth time," Remus answered, not even bothering to look up at his friends who had known he was a werewolf for some time now. "And to cover the bruises when I get back just say the bouquet landed right in front of me and I was mauled by crazed single women."

The three boys laughed but stifled their laughter as Frank walked in.

"Where are you going this time?" Frank asked, getting the sense once again that he was the only one out on a joke. "Don't tell me your mum is sick again."

"No," Remus replied, giving the boy a smile. He always felt sorry when Frank walked in at these moments since he was the only one in the dormitory not to know of Remus' monthly transformations. "My cousin is getting married."

"Congrats," Frank smiled.

"Yeah, we're hoping this one will last a little longer. You see, it's her fifth husband and sixth marriage."

"I don't want to know," Frank shook his head and walked back out of the room.

The Marauders laughed again but soon fell silent. Remus always tried to make light of his monthly excursions into the shrieking shack, but the other Marauders saw right through him. They knew that he was scared and nervous of the monster he would become in a few hours.

"Now is as good a time as any to start the research on becoming an animagus," James spoke suddenly, startling the others out of their reverie.

"How many times do I have to tell you?" Remus sounded tired and exasperated and James knew he didn't have the strength to fight them this time. "I don't want you becoming animagi. It's way too dangerous. You heard when McGonagall first mentioned them how difficult it is to become one."

"Remus," Sirius replied, "we are the smartest and most charming wizards in our year; actually, probably in the school."

"Besides," James agreed, "what makes you think we're doing this for you?"

Sirius caught on to the new argument and elbowed Peter in the gut before the boy could say anything, "Yeah, think of all the pranks we can pull without getting caught. It will be brilliant!"

"Fine," Remus snapped, deciding to save his strength for something more productive. "But don't come crying to me when you manage to get all three of you stuck with permanently furry faces and tails."

"I knew you'd see it our way," Sirius clapped Remus on the back lightly, almost sending the weakened boy tumbling. "Oops! Sorry about that."

* * *

"Look Lily," Emmeline pointed to where three of the Marauders stood looking at the shelves in the Transfiguration section. "They're back. What do you suppose they're up to?"

Lily surveyed the hushed group, particularly quiet with worry about Remus, "I don't know, but I don't like them being in the library. Let's go."

Emmeline shook her head, "They're not bothering anyone right now and besides, we really need to finish these essays."

Lily sighed, knowing that her friend was right, "I bet Alice, Dorcas, and Marlene haven't even started theirs."

Emmeline nodded, "They seem to like doing everything at the last minute. And yet somehow they all manage to pass."

"Look, they're leaving," Lily pointed to James and Sirius who were, in fact, walking out of the library.

"They're going to Quidditch," Emmeline stated. "I heard Parker tell Marlene about the extra practice. We're playing Slytherin in a week."

"Why is Peter coming this way?" Lily asked suddenly. "Oh dear, he's coming to talk to us. Do you think Black and Potter put him up to bothering us?"

Peter was coming over to the girls at a suggestion from Sirius and James, but not to bother them, "Erm, hullo."

"Hi Peter," the girls replied sweetly, still pondering why he was here.

"Can you– can you help me with my– my homework?" Peter asked quickly. "Sirius and James are going to Quidditch and then detention and Remus is … at his cousin's wedding!"

"Uh, sure we'll help Peter," Lily said, shooting her friend a strange look at Peter's behavior. "Just sit right there and tell us what you need help on."

"Uh, Potions, Transfiguration, Charms and Herbology," Peter counted on his fingers and made a face while thinking. "Oh, and History of Magic!"

Lily sighed, "I suppose we'd better get to work then."

* * *

"Uh, Evans," James ran his hand through his hair nervously as he walked up to the red-head shortly after Remus' return the next evening. "I wanted to thank you and Emmeline for helping Peter last night. That was, erm, really nice of you."

"Erm, your welcome?" Lily replied, staring at James in shock that he would thank her.

"Could you just tell Em I said thanks then?"

"Sure Potter," Lily was still gaping.

"Erm, thanks. Bye."

"Bye Potter," Lily stared at the spot where he was standing even after he had walked away.

"Lily," Alice giggled, waving a hand in front of her friend's face. "Hogwarts to Lily."

"Sorry, what?" Lily snapped suddenly out of her reverie and turned to look at her friend questioningly.

"Right after James walked away, you just stared at that spot, like some an idiot!" Alice laughed and Dorcas joined in. "You were just sitting there, staring at nothing!"

"I did not!" Lily exclaimed indignantly. "And I, certainly, am not an idiot! I was simply shocked that he would thank me."

"Sure Lily," Dorcas laughed. "Whatever you say."

"Where's Em?" Lily asked trying to change the subject.

"Why are you going to run off so you can spread Potter's thanks?" Dorcas asked.

"No," Lily knew that her friends were just not going to the subject drop until they were good and ready.

"Hold on a second, I thought Marlene was at Quidditch," Alice cut in before Dorcas could tease Lily any more.

"She is," Lily replied.

"Well then, why are Sirius and lover-boy still up here?" Alice gestured to the boys, who had finished greeting Remus and were now playing a rather distracting game of exploding snap.

"That's a good question," Dorcas bellowed across Gryffindor Tower. "Oy, Potter! Black!"

"Yeah, Meadows?" Sirius bellowed back.

"Did you have Quidditch tonight?"

"Nope, Parker gave us the night off! Why, what's wrong?"

The girls didn't answer but instead sprinted out of the portrait hole, terrified that something was seriously wrong.

"That was strange," Sirius commented to the other Marauders. "What do you guess that was about?"

"I don't know," the pale and tired Remus was suddenly regaining some strength. "But let's go find out. I didn't like the way they ran out of here."

"Wait a second," James said slowly. "They were asking about Quidditch. Where's Marlene?"

Sirius didn't answer but just ran out of the portrait hole after the girls. The other Marauders shrugged before they too sprinted out of the Common Room. Frank Longbottom watched the exchange and followed suit.

"Evans!" Sirius bellowed from the top of the stairs leading into the Entrance Hall. "Where's McKinnon?"

"I don't know!" Lily called back, for once happy at the sight of the Marauders. "We assumed she was at Quidditch but none of us have seen her in ages!"

"Em was in the library," Dorcas gasped as she and the other girl ran up behind the Marauders.

"Alice is checking the Quidditch Pitch," Lily called up to her fellow Gryffindors.

"By herself?" Frank bellowed as he arrived at the top of the stairs.

"Oh Merlin!" Lily turned and sprinted out of the castle.

"I didn't know she could run so fast," James muttered in awe as the other Gryffindors took off after the red-head.

When they reached the Quidditch Pitch the others finally caught up with Lily who was peering in horror around the entrance doorway.

"What's going on?" Sirius hissed, Lily just pointed in response.

"What is it?" James asked as Sirius peered around the doorway. But Sirius just went speechless like Lily and pointed in horror.

"For Merlin's sake," James muttered, physically moving Lily out of the way so he could take a look.

Remus' head appeared beside him. "That's the entire Slytherin Quidditch Team as well as five or so more," Remus announced after some quick counting.

"And that's Marlene and Alice," James added, pointing to the cowering girls.

"Why didn't they just use their wands?" Sirius asked, suddenly finding his voice.

"The Slytherins have their wands," Lily replied, forcing her way back to where she was. "We have to do something."

"What's going on?" Frank asked, a little too loudly because some of the Slytherin turned towards the entrance and the Gryffindors hurriedly dove out of sight.

"About 12 Slytherins have Alice and Marlene cornered," Lily seemed to have recovered from the initial shock and she was now taking control of the situation. "I think we have two options."

"Well, get on with it," James urged and Lily sent him a glare.

"We can go in fighting and hope that we can dodge anything the older students throw at us while deflecting the other blows, or we can send one person in to distract them and try to sneak Alice and Marlene out."

The Gryffindors voted for the distraction.

"Okay, but who's going to go?" Lily asked.

"I will," James said, shifting uncomfortably under the others' gazes. "I forgot to tell Marlene that we didn't have Quidditch and I've been provoking them. It's my fault this happened."

"Fine," Lily gave out the plan and added at the end. "And if you don't stick to it, Merlin help you Potter, because I will kill you myself!"

James snuck in behind the Slytherins by coming out of the Hufflepuff locker rooms. He had grabbed a broom on his way through, 'just in case' as Lily had put it, but he wasn't to use it unless there was no other option.

James pulled a dungbomb out of the endless supply in his pocket and set it off. The Slytherins whirled around at the noise.

"Potter," Malfoy, the Slytherin Quidditch Captain, growled in delight. "How marvelous of you to make an appearance."

"My pleasure," James replied sarcastically, not noticing Severus Snape sneaking up behind him from his previous place in the stands.

Malfoy sneered, raising his wand to point directly at James, "What do you think boys? Should we teach Potter a lesson in manners?"

James didn't listen to the answers of the other Slytherins but instead looked past them to see Frank pulling Alice up off the ground and Remus doing the same with Marlene. Lily was covering them and when they were safely out of the pitch she would start hexing Slytherins from behind while James kept them distracted from this direction. Sirius stood to help Lily while Emmeline, Dorcas, and Peter met Remus, Frank, Alice, and Marlene halfway.

James was brought back to the present situation when Malfoy screamed, "Now!"

The Chaser called on all his Quidditch training and strength to dodge the onslaught of curses and hexes from the Slytherins but there was no way he could have prepared for the sudden attack from behind.

"NOW!" Malfoy commanded again and James felt someone jump onto him from behind and immediately tried to throw his attacker.

Unfortunately for James, Severus Snape, although greasy, held on to him like a pit bull holds onto a chunk of steak. The Slytherins ceased fire and Snape managed to hold his wand up to James' head.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Snape cried and James fell to the ground in the full body bind.

Lily glanced behind her to see that the others had gotten away safely and she made sure that she and Sirius were fully concealed in the shadows, "Ready?"

"Evans, we have to change the plan!" Sirius hissed. "They've got James in a full body bind unless I'm wrong! And I'm never wrong! Just think what they'll do to him"

"No," Lily commanded sensibly. "There aren't enough of us to take on the Slytherins face to face. We'll have to hope they don't seriously hurt him or we'll all be mauled! You're his friend. Would Potter want us to all get seriously hurt?"

"No," Sirius replied reluctantly even though he knew Lily was right. "I just wish there was something more we could do."

"There's not," Lily replied bringing her wand up and aiming quickly, carefully, and precisely before sending the full body bind spell to silently bring down a Slytherin in the back of the group. She let out a quick sigh of relief when none of the others noticed their fallen companion. "I bet I get more than you do."

"You're on," Sirius took up the challenge eagerly, not realizing that Lily had only suggested it to get his mind off James and what the Slytherins could be doing to him.

Back over where James lay on the ground, the Slytherins stood in a group around the unfortunate Gryffindor.

"Back off," Malfoy called to an overly eager looking Slytherin. "Potter is all mine!"

The Slytherin immediately fell back into his place. All of them were too eagerly focused on James and Malfoy to be aware of their companions being picked off from behind.

Malfoy pointed his wand at James, "I've waited too long for this, Potter."

And with that he hit James with the Conjunctivitis Curse which was immediately followed by Furnunculus and the bat-bogey hex.

"Had enough, Potter?" Malfoy sneered.

Anger and defiance flashed in James' eyes and Malfoy's sneer slipped for a second before coming back more prominent than ever.

"I guess not," Malfoy snarled, not noticing as Snape, the last of his Slytherin force fell to the ground in the full-body-bind. "Incendio!"

Lily gasped in horror as James caught fire. Sirius sprinted towards his best friend and Lily hit Malfoy with the body-bind before taking off after Sirius before Malfoy had even been hit.

"Evans put him out!" Sirius roared in panic as Malfoy crashed to the ground, too stunned to even attempt to dodge the spell.

Lily didn't waste time answering him before hitting James with an extinguishing spell. Then she muttered the counter to the full body bind and knelt beside Sirius at James' nearly unconscious head, "Potter, listen to me! Don't you dare go unconscious on me or I swear I'll never speak to you again! Tell me what he hit you with!"

"Evans? Sirius?" James asked.

"Yeah, James it's us," Sirius told the Gryffindor soothingly. "Hang in there and answer Evans' question."

"Potter, tell me what you got hit with!" Lily exclaimed, taking James' head and placing it in her lap.

"Evans…"

"Potter!"

But it was too late, James had already gone unconscious.

"Bloody Hell!" Lily cursed which was something she only did in the very worst situations.

"Evans, we have to get help for James," Sirius urged as he stood up. "I can't levitate him all the way to the Hospital Wing. You're going to have to."

Lily stood up, "Wingardium Leviosa." Then, seeing Sirius' worried face she asked him suddenly to distract him, "How many did you hit?"

"Six," Sirius boasted.

"Oh, I got seven," Lily replied. "Better luck next time Black."

* * *

**Uh oh guys, Quidditch game tomorrow. Perhaps this will cross off Lily's requirement about the Quidditch Injury? But let's see what happens after I get a couple reviews, shall we?**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**

**PS in your REVIEWS! please let me know if you want me to keep going through second and then third year or just skip to forth or so. Let me know, because I'm not sure exactly what to do. Thanks!**


	14. Chapter 14: Where I'm trying to step

**AN/ Here she is guys, and let me tell you, I am updating after my frist day of school. Wow, that really bites, I want summer to start again! Oh well, at least it's band season.**

**ENJOY!**

* * *

"He won't be able to what?" Caleb Parker demanded in the Hospital Wing later that evening.

"I'm afraid that Mr. Potter is in no condition to play Quidditch tomorrow," Madame Alexandra informed the fuming Quidditch Captain. "He may not even be conscious by then."

"B– But," Parked stammered, looking from the unconscious James to his team to his Captain Badge and then back to James. "Who's going to play instead?"

Marlene winced as Madame Alexandra took care of her few scrapes and bruises, "You'd better find someone quickly."

"But there's no time to find someone to blend with the other two Chasers. Nobody knows the formations!" Parker raved, then he suddenly went silent and turned to Lily and Alice.

"Oh no," Lily put up her hands and backed away from the Quidditch Captain and right into James' bed. "I am not going to be your stand-in Chaser."

"You and Prewett come to so many of the practices and you know the team really well. Evans, you are my only hope! Please, please play!" Parker was down on his knees begging the red-head.

"No way," Lily crossed her arms and shook her head. "I am not getting on a broomstick again after that last time. I don't care if I'm the only one who can do it, I'm not going to."

"Please Lily!" Marlene begged, dodging Madame Alexandra's restraining hand and grabbing the girl's arm. "If you don't take James' place, we'll lose!"

Fear crossed Lily's eyes, "Marlene, don't do this, please! I know you know that I won't say no to you! But I'm terrified of brooms now!"

"Lily," Marlene took her friend's hand, "I won't let anything happen to you. If any Slytherins try and knock you off your broom then Sirius and I will pelt them with a couple well-aimed Bludgers."

"I don't know," Lily stammered, looking at her fellow second-years and the Quidditch team.

"Lily, you're the only one that can do this," Alice told her friend from her Hospital Bed. "I would, but they hit me with the Conjunctivitis Curse and I won't be able to see properly for days!"

"Fine, I'll do it," Lily swallowed nervously. "But only so that Gryffindor doesn't get steam rolled."

The whole Hospital Wing let out cries of happiness that made the nurse hush them loudly.

"Now, if you are all staying here tonight then I would suggest that you change into your pajamas and crawl along into bed. And don't even think about disturbing Mr. Potter!" Madame Alexandra warned.

"Oh, we wouldn't dream of it," Sirius assured the nurse, throwing a wink to his fellow Marauders. "And, might I say Allie — may I call you Allie? — thank you so much for letting us stay here tonight where we know we'll be safe instead of that dark, dangerous Gryffindor Tower."

The nurse blushed ferociously and murmured something about how she'd been telling Albus for years that the Common Rooms were too much of a hazard before she wandered back into her office.

"So, how can we wake him up, Evans?" Sirius demanded after the nurse had been in her office for a while and the Gryffindors were sure that she wasn't coming back out.

"Oh, he simply has to receive a kiss from the person he cares about most," Lily replied seriously. "You'd better pucker up, Black."

Sirius scowled, "I should say the same thing to you, Evans."

"Hey, I was only joking. What you've really got to do is just wait. You can't make a person wake up," Lily crawled onto her bed between Alice's and James' (she hadn't picked the arrangements) and settled down on her pillows.

"Ah, you underestimate the Marauders," Remus grinned at the girl. "That could be a deadly mistake, Lily."

"I doubt it," Lily yawned. "If I'm taking James' place tomorrow then I'm going to sleep."

"Taking my place?" James asked, sitting straight up. "Where are my glasses? I can't see a thing!"

"James!" The Gryffindors minus Alice (who was nearly blind herself) and Lily (who was too comfortable to get out of bed) crowded around James and greeted him eagerly.

"Allie, won't let you play tomorrow," Sirius explained. "So Evans is taking your place."

"What?" James, who had finally found his glasses, whirled to face the girl a little too quickly. "Ouch! Why do I feel as if I've been hit by a ton of bricks."

"Actually you were set on fire," Lily corrected. "And I'm not talking to you."

"Why not?" James asked.

"Ask Sirius. I'm not talking to you."

James turned toward Sirius awaiting explanation, "Well, it was a brilliant fight we were putting up. Evans and I were hitting Slytherins with the full-body-bind left and right and I was way ahead in our count."

"You were not!" Lily interrupted indignantly. "I beat you Black and you know it!"

"Fine," Sirius corrected, sticking his tongue out at the girl. "Evans was ahead of me by one at final count. Anyways, Malfoy had hit you with a bunch of curses before Evans hit him and we didn't know what they all were. Apparently the combination wasn't good, because after Evans extinguished you and you passed out you sprouted little tentacles and turned green."

"But why is she mad at me?" James asked. "What did I do now?"

"I was getting to that," Sirius snapped. "I thought you ought to look at yourself first."

Remus handed James a mirror apologetically and the Gryffindor let out a cry of shock at his reflection. He was covered in little tiny tentacles and his skin was lime green. His hair was a dark emerald green and it came out in his hands as he ran his hand through it from force of habit. Not to mention he had burns all over his face and body and his right eye was watering like Niagara Falls.

"Ouch! No wonder I hurt," James moaned, dropping the mirror onto the bed. "But nowhere near as much as I should."

"Allie drugged you up," Sirius explained. "You'll be out cold in a minute."

"Well, then tell me the rest of what happened," James demanded, the tentacles on his face waving in fury.

Lily let out a snort of laughter, "Sorry, you look ridiculous. I mean … I'm not talking to you."

James gave the laughing girl a puzzled look before turning back to Sirius.

"Well," Sirius gave a thoughtful look.

"Sirius," James growled.

"Relax, I was just pausing for dramatic effect. Where was I? Ah yes, before you passed out Evans had extinguished you and then was trying to figure out what you had gotten hit with. If I remember correctly her exact words were, 'Potter, listen to me! Don't you dare go unconscious on me or I swear I'll never speak to you again! Tell me what he hit you with'."

"You were worried about me," James teased Lily who had finally climbed out of her bed and was now standing huffily beside the top of James' bed.

"I was not!" Lily snapped. "And I'm not talking to you."

"Oh and that's not even the end. Evans had your head in her lap when you passed out," Sirius ducked as Lily dove at him across James' bed.

She didn't quite get fully airborne and slid across James in the process causing him to let out a yelp of pain. Then she missed Sirius and flew right over him and into the next bed over where she lay with her legs sticking straight up in the air and her head and back resting on the floor.

"Ouch," Lily groaned. "Sirius Black, when I get full feeling back in my body I am going to give you such a big throttling you'll wish you had never met me!"

"I doubt you'll cause any worse damage than—" Sirius started and then abruptly stopped, realizing that there were people here who didn't know his family situation.

"Evans," James called from his bed as Lily struggled to get up off the floor without causing herself anymore pain than necessary.

"Yeah, Potter," Lily suddenly hopped up off the floor right beside James' head.

"I thought you weren't talking to me," James commented as the redhead brushed herself off.

"Oh, yeah. I changed my mind ... for now. But after that Quidditch match tomorrow I may change it back."

"Thanks Evans," James would have hugged Lily but she let out a yelp of surprise as he reached out for her and with her quick reflexes, jumped back, knocking over Sirius in the process.

"Allie!" Sirius bellowed before James could open his mouth to ask what was wrong.

"What is it?" The nurse demanded, coming running into the room in her dressing gown and low-cut silk nightgown. "Oh, Mr. Potter, you're awake! And you seem to be turning pink as well as shedding tentacles. Off to bed you lot."

The Gryffindors headed off to bed, but not before Lily could smack Sirius on the head.

"I told you not to mention that!" She hissed.

"And I thought I won," Sirius retorted, sticking his tongue out at her.

Lily let out a huff of annoyance and hit him in the head again before stomping over to her own bed, this time going around James instead of over him.

"I do hope this is good news," The nurse muttered to herself as she turned out the lights.

"Did the lights just go out?" Alice asked. "I can't be sure."

"Yes, Alice," Lily replied. "The lights just went out."

"Oh good, maybe that means I'm getting better. Although it was dark before they went out too."

"What happened to Prewett?" James asked.

"Goodnight Potter!" Lily barked, getting rather irritable at being kept awake.

"Night Evans. But I still want to know what happened to Prewett!"

"Goodnight James!" Everyone shouted.

"Well, goodnight then," James muttered to himself. "Jeez, everyone is so touchy at the ungodly hours of the morning."

* * *

"Oh Marlene," Lily muttered to her friend as she picked up her broomstick the next morning in the Gryffindor locker rooms, "I don't think I can do this."

"Relax Lily, you'll be fine," Marlene soothed. "Just take a deep breath."

Lily took her friend's advice and it helped, a little. However the red-head still felt nervous as well as nauseous. Not to mention she was shaking in fear.

"Geez Evans, calm down," Sirius said, always the sympathetic and understanding one. "It's only a broomstick."

"Yeah, well the last time I got on a broomstick I lost a week of my life," Lily retorted.

"Good point."

"Thank you, I do try."

"Good morning team," James exclaimed as he bounded into the locker rooms, still pink with a stubborn tentacle hanging from the middle of his forehead as well as some burns still on his face.

"What are you doing here? Allie didn't let you out, did she?" Sirius asked.

"Erm, not exactly," James replied. "I just came to wish my favorite witch good luck."

Lily looked around, "Are you talking about Marlene? Because I think she's in the bathroom."

James sighed, "I was talking about you Evans."

"Oh."

James sighed again, the girl looked like a total wreck, "Evans, come out here I want to talk to you."

"But I—" Lily stammered, not sure if her legs would support her.

James seized her hand and pulled her up and out of the locker rooms. Then he closed the door behind her and kissed her quickly.

"What was that for?" Lily demanded, about to smack James across the face and then thinking better of it when she remembered his burns, ink face and tentacle.

"To make you angry," James replied, smirking knowingly at the girl. "I bet you don't even get up there on that broom. I bet that you chicken out."

"I will not!"

"Yes, you will, Evans. I know you're scared. You won't score a single point against Slytherin and we'll lose, all because of you."

"No, we won't!"

"Yes, we will. And you'll be the laughing stock of the whole school. Oh well, I suppose you're used to that by now."

"James Potter, if you weren't already covered in burns I'd smack you from here to Rome!" And with that the irate Lily Evans shoved James aside and stormed back into the locker rooms.

"That's a girl, Evans," James murmured. "Show them the fighting spirit."

* * *

"Welcome back to the world Evans," Sirius commented as Lily stormed into the Gryffindor locker rooms.

"What happened to bring this change of spirit?" Marlene asked, coming back from the bathroom.

Lily just grunted and snatched up her broom before following Parker and the rest of the team out onto the pitch.

"Great. Looks like we'll be swimming in the snow after all," Marlene muttered as she followed the others out onto the pitch.

* * *

"Where were you?" Remus asked James as the boy slid into a seat between the werewolf and Alice.

"I was, erm, motivating certain team members," James replied, his tentacle shivering in the cold.

Remus raised an eyebrow, "I'm willing to bet that 'certain team members' did not appreciate your, ah, means of motivation."

James didn't answer but instead looked eagerly to where the Gryffindors were emerging from their locker rooms.

"What's going on?" Alice asked. She had recovered most of her eyesight but was still having trouble seeing things at a distance.

"They're coming out onto the pitch," Emmeline informed her helpfully.

"Do you see Lily?"

"Yes, and she looks downright livid," Dorcas observed.

"Oh dear," Alice wrung her hands.

"I wouldn't worry, she'll get over it," James told the girl and his tentacle nodded in agreement.

* * *

The Quidditch game seemed to drag on and on and on. Thoughts of James being arrogant and annoying flashed through Lily's mind and she poured all of the anger into the Quidditch game, causing her shots to be untouchable. Finally the Slytherin Beaters decided that she had been enough of a nuisance and aimed both Bludgers at her simultaneously. Thankfully Sirius and Marlene managed to block both attempts to unseat the girl.

Both teams were tiring quickly. The Slytherins decided to resort to cheating, as always, and the Gryffindor were awarded what seemed like hundreds of penalty shots. But many more fouls went unnoticed and unpunished and the Gryffindors were getting fed up.

"You'd better find that snitch soon!" Caleb Parked bellowed at the team's Seeker. "I'm getting tired of their dirty tricks!"

"I'm trying," the Seeker, Derek Jones, bellowed back. "But I can't see anything through this bloody snow!"

For, about halfway through the match, the heavens had opened up and snow began to pour from the sky.

"Well, try harder!" Caleb waved his arms about in frustration as Madam Hooch blew her whistle for the game to resume.

Lily and the rest of the team kicked off the ground and resumed the game. All were shivering uncontrollably and were long since wishing that the game had been a quick one. It wasn't until a long time after the snitch had been caught and Lily and Marlene were bundled up in their comforters in their dorm celebrating their victory that either girl remembered that they could have used the warming charm on the entire team.

* * *

"Ouch, that's my toe, Sirius!" James hissed as he, Sirius and Peter made their way into the restricted section of the library, looking for books on becoming animagi.

Christmas had long since passed and James had lost his tentacle and pink color. Lily's requirement had been crossed off the list and Remus was absent again because of the full moon. All in all, life had been just normal. Well, except that Lily and James were now constantly arguing about something and James had taken to torturing Severus Snape whenever he had the chance, which only led to more arguments with Lily.

"Well, you shouldn't put your toe where I'm trying to step," Sirius hissed back.

"Ooof!" Peter exclaimed as he ran headlong into a bookshelf and fell onto the ground.

"Sorry Pete," James apologized, helping his friend up. "I didn't mean to steer you right into that bookshelf."

"It's okay," Peter replied squeakily, rubbing his behind as he peered at the books, trying to read the titles in the dark.

"I suppose this is as good a place as any to start," Sirius announced, sitting on the floor and pulling the first book off the shelf.

"Be careful," James warned as he too pulled a book of the shelf.

"Why?" Peter asked, following the other's example. "They're just books."

"That time when you were sick, James pulled one that screams off the shelf. We only just avoided Filch," Sirius explained to his friend.

"Oh," Peter replied as he looked at his book, as if daring it to scream.

"You know," James commented, "we might find something faster if we did this in some kind of order instead of just starting in random places."

"Where's the fun in that?" Sirius asked, throwing his book back on the shelf and picking up another.

James shrugged in reply and picked up another book, "I was only saying it might go faster."

Suddenly a piercing shriek filled the library, causing the boys to jump.

"Close the book, Pete!" Sirius bellowed, but he was barely heard over the shrieking book as the other boy slammed the book shut and threw it back on the shelf.

The boys tore out of the library, not stopping to rest until they were sure that nobody was following them and they were not in immediate danger of being found.

"You know, James," Sirius observed. "I think maybe you have a point there with your methodical searching."

* * *

"Lily!" Alice waved her hand in front of her studious friend's face. "Hogwarts to Lily Evans!"

"What?" Lily looked up from her textbook. "Oh, hello Alice. What's new?"

"Lily, you've been studying for hours and the exams don't start until next week. Take a little break."

"If I take a break now then I'll lose study time when Potter and Black waltz in here to distract everyone!"

"Too late, here they are," Alice pointed to James and Sirius who had just walked in carrying a suspicious looking package. They were followed by Peter and Remus who bore a similarly shaped package.

Lily sighed and put up her work. "What did you want to do?"

Alice grinned, "I found a passage and I didn't want to explore it by myself."

Lily grinned despite her want to study, "Sounds like a plan. Are the others coming?"

"Nope, I wanted some Alice/Lily time."

Lily's grin grew, "Then what are we waiting for? Where is it?"

"It's down near the Great Hall. I saw a couple of people disappear behind a tapestry and lifted it to find a passage. Then I came up here to get you," Alice explained as she led her friend out of the Common Room.

"Okay, sounds interesting. And you're sure it's not just an alcove or something."

"Yep, I checked, believe me. I didn't see exactly how far back it went, but it was pretty far."

The two continued on in companionable silence, each thinking their own private thoughts. It wasn't until they were passing the Great Hall that either spoke again.

"So, where is it?" Lily asked, looking around eagerly.

"Right here," Alice lifted a tapestry on the wall and revealed a passage that the two quickly filed into. Both girls lit their wands and started down the dimly lit passage.

"Oh, Alice, this is the passage that leads to the kitchens," Lily observed as the girls entered a connecting passage through another tapestry.

"Well, since we're here, we might as well get a snack," Alice replied.

So the two girls walked the remaining distance to the kitchen, tickled the pear and turned the handle to enter the kitchen where they were met with loud cries of 'Surprise' and 'Happy Birthday Lily!'

"But my birthday isn't until next week!" Lily exclaimed as her Gryffindor friends enveloped her in hugs.

"We knew you'd never ever leave off studying next week, so we decided to celebrate today," Marlene explained.

"Are you surprised?" Emmeline asked eagerly.

"Yes, I had no idea," Lily replied happily.

"Happy birthday, Lily!" Frank exclaimed. "Now, can we please eat cake? I'm hungry."

The girls laughed and attacked the cake eagerly before opening presents. From Marlene there was a magical radio. Emmeline had picked a couple of wizard classics for Lily to read. Dorcas gave her the beach in a bottle for when she was frustrated and couldn't go swimming. Frank handed her two presents. From him she got a journal for taking notes and from the rest of the Gryffindor boys she received a brush.

"It's a magical brush," Alice explained hurriedly, seeing the angry look starting to form on Lily's face. "James' mum bought one and it makes your hair either curl neatly or go perfectly straight depending on what you want it to do."

"Oh," Lily's anger subsided, for now. "Tell them I say thanks."

"No problem," Frank smiled. "But you could tell them yourself."

"Yes, but then I'd have to talk to Potter, and I try to avoid that painful experience as much as possible."

Frank's smile faltered slightly but Lily didn't notice since Alice was handing her the present she had gotten her.

Lily opened it to reveal a silver lily necklace and matching hair comb. She gasped in delight.

"Thank you, Alice. I love it!" Lily exclaimed as she jumped up to give her best friend a hug. "It's beautiful!"

"Oh, do you really like it?" Alice asked worriedly. "I was afraid I should have gotten the roses instead."

"No, Alice, it's wonderful. Thank you!"

Alice smiled happily and Frank couldn't help smiling with her. In fact, Alice's smile was so contagious that soon everyone was smiling, even the House-elves who were eager to help the girls in any way they could.

"Thank you all for a wonderful early birthday," Lily hugged everyone again and they continued to talk, laugh, and joke for a long time.

* * *

"It's hard to believe that we're going home for the summer," James observed as the four Marauders stood observing the Hogwarts Express before boarding it in Hogsmeade.

"I know what you mean," Remus agreed. "I've gotten so used to transforming in the Shack that getting locked in my parents' basement again is going to be strange."

"I'm not going home," Sirius commented. "I'm leaving it."

And although the other boys didn't answer, they knew that Sirius had voiced how all four felt.

Meanwhile the girls were clambering onto the train at the very end, hoping to find an empty compartment quickly. They were each thinking their own private thoughts about the upcoming summer. Marlene and Dorcas were excited about their trip to an uncharted deserted island in the Caribbean. Emmeline was wondering about her family's trip to Paris and hoping to visit the wizarding section of the Louvre. Alice was hoping to run into Frank and looking forward to spending time with her brothers Gideon and Fabian. As for Lily, she was hoping to see her parents but dreading seeing her sister who was growing ever more wary of Lily's magical abilities. The girls found a compartment and had just settled into it when the door burst open and Malfoy, Snape and a few other Slytherins walked through the doorway.

"What are you doing in our compartment?" Malfoy asked with a sneer on his face.

"I'm sorry," Dorcas retorted. "I didn't see your name on it."

Malfoy waved his wand and his name appeared on the wall, "There, now get out. I can't have blood traitors and Mudbloods stinking up my air."

Lily's eyes flashed angrily, "Let's go girls, it's easier to find a compartment than to argue about pointless things with pointless people."

The Gryffindor girls took their things and filed out of the compartment, Dorcas making sure to tread on Snape's foot and Lily brushing up against Malfoy as she went out. Then they went along the train in search of another compartment. None were open and Frank was in a compartment filled with his Ravenclaw friends. The train had already pulled out of the station when the girls stumbled upon the Marauder's compartment.

"Oh joy," Lily muttered. "It's the last one on the train and we can't go anywhere else. I suppose we'll have to ask if we can sit with them."

"Well, go on then," Dorcas opened the door and propelled Lily through. "You're the one who backed down to Malfoy and Snape and lost our compartment."

Lily shot her a look and then turned to the surprised looking Marauders, "Erm, hello, can we sit with you lot? We sort of lost our compartment and all the others are full."

James ran his hand through his hair and glanced to the sickly looking Remus (the full moon was in two days) and the eager Peter and easily irritated Sirius, "I suppose you'll have to."

"Good," Lily replied and the girls began to drag their things through the door.

Nobody said a thing and Lily resigned herself to a long, boring train ride to her long, boring summer.

* * *

**AN/ Okay guys, so that chapter took you the rest of the way through third year. Now, forth year is going to go by fairly quickly so we can get to fifth year with the infamous end of OWLs confrontation and then on to sixth and seventh where Lily's List will become very important to the story line. Yep, okay. So, I'll try and update soon, but I'm trying to get the next chapter of Katie:Codename Phoenix up soon.**

**If you want a chapter, then drop me a review and let me know how much you want it!**

**Love From,  
MotherCrumpet**


	15. Chapter 15: I look like a Christmas tree

**AN/ Oh my goodness guys, I am so soo sorry. In my author's note at the end of last chapter I wrote the wrong thing. That was the end of second year and _now_ it's third year. Thanks to _xtotallyatpeacex_ for pointing that out to me. Sorry about that guys!**

**So, without further ado, here is the summer before third year and all the way until Christmas...**

**Okay, so there's a tad more ado, for all you Sirius lovers, just thought you'd like to know that his chunk of summeris the longest!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**Sirius**

_Sirius,_

_Hope your parents are treating you alright. Hope that this can help to relieve any boredom in your life. Give it to your brother in his food or something. It'll be worth it, trust me._

_James_

Sirius looked at the object that James had sent him. It was a capsule that resembled Muggle medicine like some Sirius had taken some while at Lily's the past summer. He thought for a minute. If anything out of the ordinary happened to Regulus, he would automatically be blamed, even if there was no possible way it could be his fault. His family was trying to stamp the 'Gryffindor' out of him. But if it was good enough, maybe it would be worth a few bruises and a few days without any food.

Sirius weighed the situation and decided to trust James. Maybe he'd get lucky and avoid any sort of punishment after all. He slipped the capsule into his pocket and threw the letter into the fire where all of his letters went. Well, all the letters besides the few that he could hide behind the loose brick in the fireplace and the hollow post on his headboard. But usually he had food hidden in both these places, and honestly food was more valuable than most letters even the ones from James, Remus, and Peter.

When dinner time rolled around, Sirius offered to get everyone's drinks. His mother, although suspicious, just assumed her punishments were finally working and she had beaten some manners into her oldest son. However, nothing of the sort was even close to being true. Sirius simply wanted to drug his younger brother with whatever it was James had sent him.

Sirius eagerly awaited the effects of the capsule to come throughout dinner and the rest of the evening. But nothing ever happened. Sirius went to bed, disappointed that nothing exciting had happened yet.

The next morning he was awakened by a yell of alarm coming from down the hall. He waited until he was sure that his mother and father had already responded and then wandered in, rubbing his eyes sleepily for good measure.

Sirius froze in his tracks when he caught sight of Regulus. His younger brother had turned lime green and sprouted tentacles and his hair was a dark forest green and fell out when Mrs. Black grabbed it to look at it. **(AN/ recognize these symptoms?)**

"What did you do to him?" Mr. Black demanded taking his oldest son and pinning him against the wall as Mrs. Black tried to calm Regulus.

"I didn't do anything," Sirius gasped.

"We have to get him to St. Mungos!" Mrs. Black wailed.

"No," Mr. Black bellowed, not releasing his hold on Sirius. "No son of mine is going there where they treat Mudbloods and blood-traitors like they do everyone of good blood and families."

"But they're the only good hospital anywhere nearby!" Mrs. Black wailed.

"No," Mr. Black dropped his hold on Sirius and let the boy crash to the floor. "I'd rather my son die than go there. We'll floo to Margin and Sons in Bulgaria. They don't treat filth."

Mrs. Black insisted on helping Regulus downstairs to the fireplace even though he was perfectly capable of walking himself. Then the three Blacks left through the floo network, leaving Sirius still gasping to regain his breath on the floor upstairs.

* * *

**Lily**

"Lily!" Petunia cried up the stairs. "Hurry up! We're leaving to go on a normal shopping trip for normal things that normal people want!"

"I'm coming!" Lily called back, her sister's stressing of the word 'normal' not escaping her. "Hold up a second! I've got to brush my hair!"

Lily figured her mother must be outside in the car, waiting for her. Her parents suspected that Petunia was giving her older sister a hard time, but they had never actually heard Petunia's bullying. Lily knew that she should not let her sister bully her, but she always made excuses.

The redhead sighed as she ran her magical brush through her hair and it curled perfectly. Then she twisted it and secured it with the comb that Alice had gotten her. She put on a seemingly excited smile and left her room for a day of shopping with her mother and sister.

* * *

**Alice**

Alice sighed as her parents and brothers went to yet another party, leaving her to fend for herself until James arrived a little later. They had been frequently left together during these prominent parties. Marlene came once or twice when she was in town and her parents went to the parties but right now she and Dorcas were in the middle of nowhere in the Caribbean.

"Hi Prewett," James said as cheerily as possible when he stepped out of the fireplace.

"Hi James," Alice replied, sighing inwardly. It was going to be another long and boring night.

* * *

**Marlene and Dorcas**

"It's so beautiful!" Marlene exclaimed to Dorcas as the girls watched the sun set over the water on their first night in the Caribbean.

"Yes it is," Dorcas wasn't talking about the sunset. Instead the girl was looking eagerly into the thick trees on the island. "I can't wait to start exploring."

"Just think about we might find!"

And with that the girls started discussing the many things they could think of finding on their Caribbean adventure.

* * *

**Remus**

Remus lay tiredly in his parents' basement one morning after his transformation. His parents had yet to come and get him even though it had been hours since his transformation ended. But he was used to this neglect. His mother just couldn't bring herself to look at his self-inflicted wounds and his father always stayed distant, preferring to keep himself busy with work rather than worrying about his werewolf son.

Eventually the lock on the door clicked and Remus dragged himself up the stairs and out into the noon sunlight to find the customary first aid kit sitting in the doorway. He scooped it up and tended to the worst of his wounds before going to sleep in his room with the door closed.

* * *

**Peter**

Peter grinned happily as he helped his mother garden one hot summer morning. He spotted a rat and remembered not to point the creature out to his mother, knowing she hated the creatures. His father had died before he was born and he was as close as he could be with his mother. She was a loving person and was sometimes a tad bossy, but she always did what she thought was best for her son.

This morning they were weeding her petunias and lilies. Peter loved the work only because it was time he could spend with his mother.

* * *

**James**

James hovered over his Quidditch pitch, staring at the horizon and wondering what Lily Evans could be doing right now.

He was also hoping that his friends Remus and Sirius were doing okay since last night was the full moon and Regulus had finally been cured and released from the hospital. He had written to both boys that morning and figured that Remus at least would be able to respond sometime today. He circled the pitch again, awaiting eagerly the beginning of the term in a couple of weeks.

* * *

"Black, Regulus!" Professor McGonagall called and Sirius' brother came forward to try on the sorting hat. 

It had barely touched his head before shouting out, "Slytherin!"

"Mum and Dad will be happy," Sirius commented dryly. "There will be no living with them."

James clapped his best friend's shoulder and turned back to watch the sorting. The various first-years were divvied up and the new Gryffindors looked like a fairly promising lot. A couple of the girls waved shyly to James when they felt his gaze upon them and then broke into excited whispers when he smiled and nodded at them.

"I see James has already started forming a fan club," Alice observed.

Lily groaned as she noticed the tittering first-years, "Naturally. It looks like Black has one too, although he doesn't appear to have done anything to catch their attention."

The other Gryffindor girls looked around the Great Hall as Dumbledore gave his short speech and the food appeared on the table. Then they dug into the feast eagerly. It wasn't until much later that Marlene became aware that the girls were being watched. She turned to catch the gaze of a Ravenclaw 4th year briefly before he turned away, blushing slightly.

"I think we're being watched," Marlene announced quietly and she told the other girls who had been watching them.

"Oh, I think his name is Daniel Hanson," Lily said as she surveyed the Ravenclaw boy. "Maybe he likes one of you girls."

"Maybe he likes you, Lily," Alice replied.

"I doubt it. Unfortunately for me the only guy whose attention I attract is James Potter."

"That's not true Lily," Emmeline chided, pointing down the table to a fourth-year Gryffindor who was very openly staring at Lily.

Lily looked slightly alarmed, "But I look like a Christmas tree."

The other girls laughed and shook their heads.

"Just keep telling yourself that Lily," Dorcas shook her head. "Half of the girls at Hogwarts wish they looked like you, and you're only a third-year right now."

Lily looked skeptical but let the conversation drop for now.

* * *

Halfway through the fall term, shortly after Halloween the Gryffindors were sitting in History of Magic, preparing for another boring class. They were surprised when Professor Binns, the decrepit teacher, didn't walk into the classroom but instead floated into the room right through the chalkboard. Or rather Lily and Remus were surprised, they being the only two that weren't already in a stupor. 

"Oh my goodness!" Lily gasped, and tugged on Marlene, who was sitting besides her, which caused the girl's hand to slip and her head to hit the desk.

"Ouch Lily! What was that—" The girl went silent and then chucked her quill at Dorcas who was sitting directly in front of her.

Dorcas sat up quickly and almost fell out of her seat in shock when she caught sight of the teacher, "Merlin!"

Dorcas nudged Alice, who looked a little miffed at being woken up. Then her eyes widened and she coughed loudly to get Emmeline's attention. The other girl looked at Alice, one eyebrow raised and then looked toward the front as Alice motioned wildly with her head.

And similarly the realization that their teacher was now a ghost spread throughout the classroom. Remus had alerted Peter who was sitting beside him and they had roused the back half of the classroom. Soon all of the Gryffindors were sitting and staring at their teacher in awe. Throughout the entire lesson he didn't once mention the fact that he was now a ghost and he was certainly as boring as ever.

"What do you suppose happened?" Alice asked as the class filed out of the classroom.

"Well, he certainly didn't get knocked off in an exciting wizard's duel," Sirius observed.

"You think he's too boring to ever be involved in something like that Black?" Dorcas asked sarcastically.

"No, I'm saying that he didn't look like he had been knocked off in a duel, although you probably do have a point with that boring thing."

Dorcas rolled her eyes.

"Maybe he was abducted by aliens and then his heart gave out," Sirius suggested causing more eye rolls from Dorcas.

"I think that he just got up from in front of the fire and didn't even realize he was dead," James announced and the others agreed this was the most likely explanation.

"I still think he was abducted by aliens," Sirius pouted.

"Oh yes, Sirius," Remus' voice was dripping with sarcasm. "That's definitely the most logical explanation."

"See, Remus agrees with me!" Sirius exclaimed as they entered the Great Hall, once again missing the sarcasm.

* * *

"Wow she's cute," James commented, gazing over at the Hufflepuff table at Amanda Mason, the third-year beauty of Hufflepuff. 

"Well then ask her out," Sirius urged before turning back to his own girlfriend, a stunningly beautiful 4th year Ravenclaw whose name he had never known.

"I thought you were still hung up on Lily," Remus observed.

"Yeah, well I'm trying to move on," James replied. "You know I think maybe I will ask her out."

Remus just watched as James stood up, crossed the Great Hall and sat down beside Amanda. He shook his head. Amanda was pretty and she had a good heart, but she was as dumb as a post. James would probably be fed up with her in less than a week.

It wasn't much longer before James escorted Amanda back across the Great Hall to sit at the Gryffindor table. She was already laughing at everything he said. Her laugh was definitely not her most attractive quality seeing as how it resembled a Muggle fire truck horn.

Remus looked over at Peter who was watching his two friends and practically drooling over their girlfriends. Then he shook his head as he turned back to his book. He wasn't really reading it, but more thinking about Christmas coming up in a few weeks and what he would get his friends. Unfortunately for Remus the full moon landed on Christmas Eve. He was not looking forward to that, not in the slightest.

* * *

"She wasn't a good kisser," James replied as Sirius asked him why he had dumped Amanda before boarding the Hogwarts Express to go home for the Christmas holidays. 

"Did I hear you right?" Lily asked incredulously. "You dumped your girlfriend because she wasn't a good kisser."

"Yeah, so?" James shrugged.

Lily let out a grunt of frustration, "You disgust me."

And with that Lily pushed past James and boarded the train. Alice threw James a sympathetic look before following.

"So, who are you going to ask out next?" Sirius asked, unperturbed by the situation.

James shook his head to clear it, "I was thinking maybe Anastasia Martin."

"Oh, good choice," Sirius nodded his approval. "I'm thinking about asking Julia Lynn."

"What about you Remus?" James asked, turning to his friend. "You going to ask anyone out?"

"Erm," Remus replied, slightly flustered.

"Come on, no girl would turn you down," Sirius insisted. Remus just shook his head.

"Oh, he's worried about his 'furry little problem'," James thought for a second. "I suppose that would make things complicated about once a month."

"I wouldn't worry about that Remus," Sirius clapped his friend on the shoulder. "If James and I are any indication of the duration of relationships, then you haven't got much to worry about."

Remus stared at Sirius, open-mouthed, "Did you just use the words 'indication' and 'duration'?"

"Yeah, I think I've been listening to you talking too much. Maybe I should go back to just pretending I'm listening."

* * *

**AN/ Next chapter expect Christmas for all of the characters. I told you my plan was to speed through third year, I'm only hitting the highlights and important events like the begining of Sirius and James' dating sprees which will only get worse before they get better. Ah well, they turn out to be lovable characters in the end, so there we go.**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**


	16. Chapter 16: Pretending to Defend Evans

**_LILY_**

"LILY!" Petunia bellowed as she came barreling up the stairs and into Lily's room while it was still dark on Christmas morning.

Lily groaned and buried her head under her pillow and snuggled down into her covers.

"LILY! It's Christmas! Get up!" Petunia shrieked when her sister didn't respond and ripped the covers off the bed.

"Ahh!" Lily screeched. "Its cold!"

Petunia smirked triumphantly, "I knew that would get you up. Now come on! I want to open presents!"

Lily grabbed her warm robe and placed her cold feet into slippers before following her sister back downstairs, although Lily chose not to skip.

"Morning Lily," her father greeted her whilst trying to stifle a yawn.

"Morning dad," Lily replied sleepily. "Where's Mum?"

"Right here," Mrs. Evans announced as she walked into the room with a tray containing three cups of coffee and a cup of tea for Petunia, who hated the taste of coffee.

"Thanks Mum," Lily murmured as she sipped her steaming cup of coffee.

Mrs. Evans smiled at her daughter, "Ready to open presents?"

Petunia's answer was to practically throw herself at the Christmas tree and start ripping open presents. Lily followed suit, but at a slower pace and without diving into the tree.

**_REMUS_**

"Ohh," Remus groaned as he peered around his parents' basement early on Christmas morning. Last night had been a full moon; in fact, it had been his worst transformation since before going to Hogwarts.

The boy sat up, massaging his ribs and looked at the newest scars on the walls. He sighed, wishing, as he had ever since he had been bitten, that his parents weren't terrified of him and that they would offer him support. The only thing that kept him happy that it was Christmas was the fact that his friends were all heading over to James' for a party that night.

Remus took one last look around the room and dragged himself up the short flight of stairs, waiting for the door to be unlocked so that he could go tend to his wounds.

**_SIRIUS_**

Sirius opened his gift from James eagerly, turning so that his family could not see what he had gotten. When he had ripped all the paper off he found a small mirror. Sirius' face dropped and then he remembered that this was probably not an ordinary mirror. No, it was from James; it had to do something interesting and out of the ordinary.

Sirius slipped it into his pocket before his family could think to ask questions and opened his last gift, the one from his parents. It turned out to be a book titled 'The Role of the Modern Pureblood Heir'. Sirius put on a smile and thanked his parents, opening it and pretending to read it right away.

**_JAMES_**

James snuck down to open his presents, thinking that this year would be his year to outsmart his parents and open his presents while they were still asleep. No sooner had the clock struck twelve than the lights flipped on to reveal his parents standing under the Christmas tree.

"Better luck next time," Mr. Potter laughed.

"Oh, I do remember the first time we did this," Mrs. Potter launched into her yearly narrative, "you must have been about 6. You woke up and remembered that it was Christmas. We had been discussing when one day became the next a few days ago; you were a very curious child. Well, looking at the clock in your room…"

"I saw that it was 12:01. Knowing that meant it was already Christmas, I rolled out of bed, landed on the floor with a thump, and proceeded to run down the hall like the house was on fire. I was yelling and waving my arms and Dad and you were scared to death. You followed me and I dove into the pile of presents, squealing happily and laughing," James finished the story himself, causing his mother to start laughing, "You tell it the same was every year Mum."

Mr. Potter joined in the laughter as James handed each person their pile of presents, "And you try the same thing every year."

"No I don't," James insisted. "I don't do my own theme music anymore!"

The Potter family laughed and started to open their presents.

**_ALICE_**

Alice squealed in delight as she unwrapped her present from her older brothers Gideon and Fabian, "Oh thank you! I love it!"

"We knew you would, little sis," Gideon grinned at his sister.

"You've always loved music, so why not get you your very own radio," Fabian added.

"Will it work at Hogwarts?" Alice asked eagerly.

"Oh, of course," Gideon replied.

"Wouldn't have it any other way," Fabian agreed.

"Go on Alice, turn it on," Her mother urged.

Alice took the radio and set it on the ground, flipping the switch on. Music floated out and Alice laughed in delight. Gideon jumped up and started dancing with her and Fabian helped his mother up and started dancing with her. Alice's father looked at his family proudly, smiling and laughing with everyone else.

**_BACK AT SCHOOL_**

Lily rolled out of her bed one morning after the Christmas Holidays ended and spotted the long forgotten list on the wall. She crossed over and peered at it.

"Alice!" She exclaimed. "Alice, I had completely forgotten about this ridiculous list. But come and look."

"What?" Alice asked sleepily, having been woken by her best friend's exclamations. "Read it to me."

By now all the third-year Gryffindor girls were awake and they clustered behind Lily, eager to hear what the list read.

"Well, so far items 1-6 have been crossed off."

"What are those Lily?" Emmeline asked. "I can't remember."

"Oh well, how about I just read it then?"

The other girls agreed and Lily read: (_A/N: the x mean it's crossed off the list... the strikethrough doesn't work on fanfic)_

1. x Lose the glasses, they make him look dumber than he already does

2. x Make a top grade in the class

3. x Talk about something other than Quidditch

4. x Actually grow taller than Lily

5 x Sustain a horrible Quidditch injury and not play in a game but go to the match and cheer the team on anyway

6. x Refer to Alice Prewett as something other than 'Gideon and Fabian's sister' or the ever popular 'Prewett'

7. Stop messing up his already messy hair all the time so that it looks like he's just stepped off his broomstick

8. Learn to walk around the school instead of strutting everywhere

9. Get Remus Lupin out of trouble instead of into it

10. Date a girl other than a bimbo

11. Break up with girl mentioned in #10 for some good reason other than 'she wasn't a good kisser'

"Well, I like numbers 10 and 11," Marlene commented, "But I think number 7 should be crossed off too."

"Why do you say that? He's always messing up his hair," Lily turned to look at Marlene.

"Yes, but it's just a nervous habit. And when did these things get added? I don't remember noticing half of them."

"That's because Lily charmed it so we wouldn't have to write them in or cross them off ourselves, remember? The list keeps track of everything that James does to annoy Lily and adds them automatically," Alice replied.

Lily groaned as Marlene opened her mouth to reply.

"What is it?" Emmeline asked.

"Way to go Marlene, you just caused another requirement to be crossed off. Thanks," Lily threw her hands up in the air and went to get dressed.

"No need for thanks, Lily," Marlene teased, glancing to see that number 7 had been crossed off. "I'll do it anytime!"

**_SOMETIME LATER... WITH THE BOYS_**

James groaned as his newest girlfriend, Hannah Otte, walked into their joint Divination class and sat down in Sirius' spot.

"Hi James!" The girl smiled enthusiastically and James remembered that her shrill voice tended to give him headaches. But she was pretty and she was an excellent kisser.

"Hi," James replied, flashing his most winning Potter grin and causing the girl to start giggling, then he proceeded to ignore her as best as he could for the rest of the class.

Unfortunately for James they were reading their tea leaves with a partner so his attempts to ignore her were not very successful.

"And then I told her that pink was so not her color, she should stick to purple, you know?" Hannah managed to babble even while drinking her tea.

James just nodded and drank his own tea, not even bothering to listen to his girlfriend's incessant babble.

"Oh my gosh, can you believe that Lily Evans? She thinks she's so great just because she's smart and a Muggleborn. I mean, what's so great about being Muggleborn anyways? And there she is, talking to Alice Prewett like she's from the oldest wizarding family and the best blood. It's not like I don't like muggleborns or anything but she's pushing it. And her fashion sense? She should so not wear her hair in curls like that; her face is way too narrow. And her hair is the most disgusting color I've ever seen in my life. But her eyes are unique. If only she knew that she should line them in brown and not black, she might be decently attractive."

James had only been half listening and hadn't been retaining anything until he heard Lily's name. Then his head snapped to face Hannah and he listened to every word she said. He got angrier and angrier with every sentence she uttered but she didn't notice. When she finally paused for breath he cut in on her one sided conversation.

"You don't know anything about Lily Evans," James hissed threateningly. "I won't have you insulting her in front of me."

Hannah laughed, still not noticing that James was close to exploding, "That's funny, Jamesie, pretending to defend Evans."

"I'm not pretending anything, Hannah," James growled, his hands shaking with suppressed anger. "And if you don't know me well enough to know that insulting people in front of me is not a good thing to do, then maybe we shouldn't see each other any more."

"What? No, Jamesie! I was just kidding," Hannah cried, attracting the puzzled looks of the rest of the class.

"You know what? I don't think you were," James replied, handing her teacup back to her and snatching his own. "Go and find a new partner to insult people in front of."

And with that James handed his teacup to the shocked professor and left the tower without looking back, nursing his headache as he went.

**_AUTHOR'S NOTE_**

_A/N okay, so my line drawing thingy is not working... that irks me to no end. Anyways..._

_I am SOO sorry that I took so long to update! I haven't had time to write very much and I could have sworn that I had already posted this... Don't be mad! Please! I'm about to go and write more right now!_

_Please don't hate me! I love you all because you read this and because you review! Thank you so much!_

_Love From,_

_MotherCrumpet_


	17. Chapter 17: UHmazing

**AUTHOR'S NOTE**

**okay, sorry this took forever, but you can partially blame fanfiction for being mean and not letting me upload anything! Please be uh-mazingly nice and check out my oneshots. Um... let's see, did I mention I'm really sorry that this took so long, and I'm not going to be surprised if you have to goo back and reread to figure out what's going on!?! That's my fault and, though I really hope you do, I will understand fully if you do not wish to reread my story. Anyways, without further ado, I hope you enjoy the next installment of _Lily's List_!**

* * *

"So, after that charming display in Divination, who are you going to ask out next?" Sirius surveyed James, awaiting an answer eagerly. 

"I don't know. I might not ask anyone out." James replied. He was still not fully calm after his 'explosion' as Sirius liked to call it.

"Not ask anyone out!" Sirius sat up suddenly and sounded shocked, "James, I've never seen this side of you before!"

"Well, I think it's stupid for me to keep dating bimbos that I don't like."

"Then pick a girl that you do like," Remus suggested.

"She won't date me."

"I wasn't talking about Lily. I was thinking Marlene or someone."

"That's it!" James jumped off the bed and started out of the dormitory.

"James, where are you going?" Sirius called after his best friend.

"I'm off to Quidditch to find Marlene of course."

"She's not going to go for it!" Sirius called after him down the stairs.

"I don't know Sirius, she might," Remus replied lazily from his four poster bed as he flipped the page of his book.

Sirius clenched his jaw and chased after James. Remus glanced up from his book for the first time and raised an eyebrow.

"I was wondering about that," Remus commented to himself before turning back to his book and continuing to read.

* * *

Marlene walked into the girls' dorm after Quidditch, grinning happily and not really paying attention to what she was doing. 

"Hullo Marlene," Lily greeted her starry-eyed friend as she looked up from her Charms essay, "How was Quidditch?"

"Wonderful," Marlene sighed happily, "Quidditch was just wonderful!"

This caught Lily's attention and she set her quill down. "That's good. Why exactly was it so wonderful?"

Marlene lay so that her head was hanging off her bed and she was looking at Lily. "I got asked out by one of the best looking guys in the school."

Now Marlene had all of the Gryffindor girls' attentions. They all stopped what they were doing and looked over at the starry-eyed girl who was acting very un-Marlene-ish.

Lily thought for a second and then her face darkened slightly. But the emotion passed so quickly that none of the others could even be sure that it was there. "James Potter asked you out, didn't he?"

At this statement Alice, who had been brushing her hair, froze with her brush halfway through her long blonde hair. Dorcas sat down abruptly and missed her bed and Emmeline simply nodded like she should have figured it out already. Marlene lost her starry-eyed look and appeared to have just crash landed from Cloud 9. Lily simply nodded.

Marlene sat up and looked directly into Lily's emerald eyes. Lily stared right back and the two seemed to be measuring each other up.

"Do you like him, Marlene?" Lily asked with her voice devoid of any emotion.

"Yes, Lily, I do."

"Then I promise to try my hardest to get along with him. You already know my opinions on him, so there's no point in asking me that question."

"Are you okay with it?" Marlene inquired quietly.

"I am okay with it. I'm just … concerned … is all. I'm going to the Common Room for a minute or two. I want to ask Remus something."

Lily stood up and the other girls watched her walk out.

"Alice , you know her the best, is she really okay with it?" Marlene asked.

Alice suddenly became aware of the brush that she was still in her hair and began to pull it the rest of the way through her long blonde curls as she thought for a second. "She's just afraid that this will ruin her friendship with you. She thinks she has so few friends and since you're dating her enemy…" Alice trailed off and the girls all sat, absorbed in their own thoughts.

Meanwhile, Lily was down in the Common Room having a chat with a certain Marauder.

"Potter, up!!" Lily commanded as she walked by the corner where the four Marauders sat, James with a happy grin on his face and Sirius wearing a slight scowl.

James' grin immediately dissolved and he hesitated, wondering if it was wise to follow her.

"Now!" Lily called back over her shoulder as she left through the Portrait Hole.

"If you don't go now, it's only going to be worse later." Remus observed and James jumped up, wanting the experience to be as painless as possible.

When James entered the hallway Lily started walking again and entered an empty classroom located two doors down. James had no choice but to follow her, which he did slowly.

"You like Marlene?" Lily stated, rather than asked.

James paled and looked at her, "Yes, of course I like Marlene."

"Good, but if I ever find out that you are using her for anything, any plans of revenge or just because you want a little fun, then you will wish you had never been born, Potter, because you will have me to answer to. If you hurt her in any way…" Lily let her sentence hang ominously and James gulped.

"I would never hurt her."

"You see that you don't, Potter." And with that, Lily turned and left the classroom leaving a very much frazzled James Potter in her wake.

"Did he answer you question?" Dorcas asked as Lily returned to the girls' dormitory.

"Oh yes, he gave me a very satisfactory answer. I'm not overly worried about my essay anymore." Lily replied.

Dorcas shook her head and Marlene bit her lip, looking worried.

"Lily—"

"Relax Marlene. I'm laying off of Potter. But only for you," Lily added quickly.

Marlene broke into a grin and hugged her friend, "Thank you Lils. You don't know how much this means to me!"

"I think that my ribs are quite aware of your enthusiasm, thank you very much," Lily replied, "Now, I've got another foot and a half to write for Flitwick, so if you'll excuse me."

Marlene let go of her friend, knowing that the redhead didn't want to make a big fuss out of this, but she still didn't miss the pleased grin that had formed on Lily's face at the knowledge of making her friend happy.

* * *

"I've just had a brilliant idea for our end of year prank!" Sirius breathed as he threw himself on the couch between James and Marlene exactly one week before the end of school, the day before exams began. 

"Really?" James sat bolt upright and looked at his best friend excitedly, "I've been thinking for weeks and I can't come up with a thing!"

Sirius sent a pointed look at Marlene, urging her to go away. "I don't mean to brag, but I always was the inept one."

"Sirius, I think you mean ingenious," Remus commented over his Transfiguration book.

Sirius stuck his tongue out, "Nuh uh!"

"Yes, you did because inept means that you are lacking the competence or skill for a particular task."

"Well, what does ingenious mean then?"

"Ingenious - possessing cleverness and imagination."

"That's the one!" Sirius jumped up and did a little dance, "I'm ingenious, I'm not inept!"

"I think you've got that backwards, Black!" Lily called from her study group at one of the tables across the room, "You're definitely inept!"

Sirius turned on Remus, "You told me the definitions backwards!"

"No I didn't!" Remus brandished his Transfiguration book in an effort to keep Sirius back far enough so that he couldn't reach him.

"Yes you did! Evans said I had them backwards and she's more of a walking encyclopedia than you are!"

Remus frantically tried to distract Sirius, "Weren't you going to tell us your brilliant plan?"

Sirius' face went blank for a second. "Oh yeah! I'm telling you guys! This will be UH-MAZING!!!"

"Uh-mazing?" Peter asked, "Is that better that amazing?"

Sirius looked shocked and grabbed his heart, "Merlin yes, Pete! Uh-mazing is much better than amazing!"

"How much better?" Peter wanted to know, "Is it chocolate ice cream instead of vanilla? Or is it getting two scoops of each?"

"Definitely getting two scoops of each!" Sirius exclaimed, "Maybe even three!!"

"Wow," Peter breathed. "Uh-mazing!"

"Well if it's so 'uh-mazing', then why don't you tell us?" James demanded and Sirius looked pointedly at Marlene again.

"Sirius, are you constipated?" Marlene asked, cocking her head to one side, "Because I think Lily has some Muggle laxatives or something upstairs and I could get you one."

"I'M NOT CONSTIPATED!!!" Sirius bellowed. "I JUST WANT YOU TO LEAVE!!!!"

"Well, aren't we touchy today?" Marlene muttered, "Couldn't even ask politely, could you?"

"I'M SIRIUS BLACK! I DON'T DO POLITE!!!"

"You should learn," Marlene suggested as she got up off the couch, waved goodbye to James and walked over to Lily and the study group in the corner.

"So, now that SHE'S gone," Sirius emphasized the 'she' and made sure that Marlene could hear it from her new location.

"You could have asked!" Marlene cried, "I just assumed you were constipated with that face you were making!"

"I'M NOT CONSTIPATED!!!!" Sirius bellowed.

"Not that I want you to get angry or anything Sirius, but you did look a tad bit constipated. Maybe you should eat more fiber." James suggested.

"And maybe you should buy a new head in case I rip that one off in the night!"

"I suggest you buy a nicer looking one!" Lily commented. She had just been walking towards the girls' staircase when Sirius spoke. "You've got enough money after all. You ought to be able to buy a smaller, good-looking one."

James scowled and Sirius and Lily both smirked.

"You know?" Sirius commented, "I think that's the first thing we've ever agreed on, Evans."

"Let's not make it a habit," Lily replied as she disappeared up the staircase, "It'd take the fun out of life."

"Your plan, Sirius?" Remus redirected Sirius' attention back to the original subject. "I'd like to get some studying done before I graduate if you don't mind."

"Sorry Remus, I got a little sidetracked." Sirius thought for a second, "Ah yes, my brilliant plan! Well, here it is…"

The Marauders leaned in while Sirius whispered the plan to them. Then they were silent for a second before…

"SIRIUS YOU'RE BRILLIANT! IF YOU WERE A GIRL, I'D KISS YOU!!" James shouted, causing the entire Common Room to look suspiciously, and fearfully, at the Marauders.

"James Potter, you'd better not go around kissing brilliant girls!" Marlene warned from her seat in the corner next to Alice.

James immediately lost all trace of elation, "I'm not– I mean– I haven't– Marlene, I—"

Marlene laughed, "Calm down, James. I was only joking. And you're the one who was always telling Lily to lighten up!"

James sat down, excitement beginning to rise again but not to the previous explosive levels, "So, End-of-Year Feast?"

"End-of-Year Feast!" The Marauders agreed.

* * *

**Ahhh, so the question is, what was Remus wondering about and why is Sirius being so mean to Marlene? Send me your guesses in your review!!!**

**Love From,**

**MotherCrumpet**


	18. Chapter 18:MY HAIR, IT HAS PUMPKIN IN IT

**LAST DAY 3RD YEAR:GUYS**

"This was your grand idea Sirius?" Marlene asked as she walked into the Great Hall with the Marauders on the last day of school.

"Yes!" Sirius exclaimed, surveying their handy-work, which was timed to start in a few minutes. "What do you think?"

"I don't know. I was expecting exploding pumpkins or something; not that," Marlene pointed at the boys prank.

"Well, I'm sorry my idea wasn't good enough for you," Sirius snapped, before stomping away.

"Erm, I'm just going to go and …" Remus started, but then realized that neither James nor Marlene was paying the slightest bit of attention to him so he just walked off.

Peter had decided he was hungry as soon as they stepped into the hall and was already seated across from Sirius and scarfing down his food.

"How long?" Remus asked as he took the seat next to Sirius.

"What?"

"How long have you liked Marlene?"

"I don't have the slightest clue what you are talking about." Sirius poked at his scrambled eggs and made a face.

"Well, if you did know, then what would you say 'happened' that you didn't make it to stop him from asking her out?"

"If I had the slightest idea what you were talking about, I might say that I ran into McGonagall and made her drop all of the tests that she was grading."

Remus nodded and the miserable Sirius poked his eggs one last time before sitting up and grinning, "It's time for our prank!"

* * *

**LAST DAY 3RD YEAR: GIRLS**

Lily, Alice, Dorcas, and Emmeline walked into the Great Hall in the midst of the Marauders end-of-year prank.

"What do you think is going on?" Alice asked, peering around the Great Hall where various first and second years were cowering under the house tables with some of the older students tying to coax them out.

"I'd guess it might have something to do with the Marauders and the fact that the ceiling has been 'modified' to look as if it's falling." Lily pointed to the enchanted ceiling which had, in fact, been given the appearance of having cracks.

"The sky is falling! Run for your lives!"

Lily turned in the direction of the voice to see Sirius standing on top of one of the tables, pointing up at the ceiling and bellowing at the top of his lungs that the sky was falling.

Lily sighed, "Looks like the end of another year has gone out with a bang thanks to the Marauders."

Dorcas laughed as one particularly terrified first year bit a seventh year that was trying to force them out from under the table. "Did you see that? Langston just got bit by a midget!"

Emmeline smiled a tiny smile as she saw Remus trying to coax Sirius off the table. He was bribing Sirius with a Zonko's bag and a piece of toast but Sirius was ignoring him and bellowing away at the top of his lungs.

"Where's Marlene?" Lily asked, looking around the chaos that was the Great Hall for her friend, who was hopefully not in the company of James Potter.

"Is that her under that table?" Emmeline asked, pointing to a table that was particularly crowded with terrified witches and wizards.

"Oh Merlin!" Dorcas exclaimed, "Look at that!"

"Eww, someone cover the poor first years' eyes!" Alice exclaimed.

"What?" Lily asked, turning her attention from Sirius' jumping from table to table to where the other girls were looking. When she saw the object, or rather objects, of their attention, she went rather paler than usual.

"Lily? Lily! BREATHE!" Dorcas exclaimed, thumping her friend on the back and causing Lily to exhale rather forcefully and then gasp for another breath.

"Lily?" Alice asked tentatively. "Lily? Are you okay?"

Lily shook her head from side to side as if clearing her vision, "I'm fine, Alice. I was just surprised is all. I never really thought of Marlene as one to make out with her boyfriend under the Slytherin table in the Great Hall."

"Yeah," Dorcas agreed, "I thought for sure that it would be the Gryffindor table."

* * *

**JAMES & MARLENE **

Summer was half over when it happened. James and Marlene were over at James' house, swimming, playing Quidditch, and having the typical summer fun when all of a sudden the mood turned serious. And no, that doesn't mean that Sirius Black popped out of some random tree or anything and ruined their mood. It means that the mood in the air took on a very sober feeling.

"Hey, James?" Marlene asked.

"Yeah?"

"I was thinking. About this relationship."

James sat up and looked at Marlene, "Really?"

"It's kinda weird, don't you think?" Marlene looked out across the pool towards the Quidditch Pitch.

"Weird, like dating your sister weird?" James asked, "Or like eating too much ice cream weird?"

"The first one." Marlene replied.

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. So, what do you want to do?"

"I dunno," Marlene turned to look at James, "Do you think we ought to break up?"

"I don't know. Is that what you want?" James questioned.

"I'm not sure, but I think it would be less awkward if we did."

"Okay then, we're officially broken up." There was a second of silence, "Do you want to go play Quidditch?"

"You're on!" Marlene exclaimed, "Race you there!"

And that was that.

* * *

**Lily**

Lily glanced out her window and spotted him walking up the path towards her front door. She grinned with excitement and sprinted down the stairs and out the front door.

"Hey, Lily!" Christian, her summertime Muggle boyfriend, exclaimed as she gave him a hug.

"Hi, Christian!"

"Ready to go?" He asked taking her hand in his and slipping her bag onto his own shoulder.

"Of course I am!" She replied before turning back to the house for a second, "Bye 'Tunia! See you tonight!"

Petunia didn't even wave goodbye as Lily turned and walked with Christian down the street and towards the lake. But Lily could tell that she was seething. Christian went to Petunia's school and he was her latest conquest towards dating. The two had established a friendship, but there hadn't been any sort of spark like the one that Lily had with him that day they had first met. And so, Petunia was angry, but Lily honestly had no inkling why.

"Do you know why 'Tunia just gave me that look?" Lily asked Christian.

"I dunno," Christian replied carefully, "But Lily, I think it might have something to do with us."

"That's absurd. Wait, what?"

"I never believed him, but Steve kept telling me that Petunia had a crush on me. We were just friends as far as I was concerned and I didn't think it was true anyway."

"If you had to guess, is that what you'd say that look was about?"

"Yes," Christian sighed, "I'm sorry, Lily. I really should have mentioned it sooner but I didn't want Steve's theory to get in the way of our relationship."

"Christian, you know that we probably won't last through the year anyway; I don't go to school around here."

"I thought maybe you'd come to Petunia's and my school next year."

"I can't do that. I have friends at my school. It's where I belong. Besides, Petunia wouldn't want me at her school."

"I'd want you."

"Maybe we should just break up now," Lily let go of Christian's hand and stopped in the middle of the sidewalk.

"Lily, you don't mean that."

"Yes, I do. I can't go around taking Petunia's friends, no matter how much I like them."

"You have a boyfriend at your school, don't you? I bet it's that Potter kid that you talk about so much. I should have known someone as pretty as you wouldn't be single. You've been playing me to get in a good snog in between visits from Potter, haven't you? And that now your guilty conscience is getting to you, you think can just get rid of me under the pretense of not wanting to get in the way of your sister and her love life. Here's your bag. I hope you have a nice life with Potter!" Christian dropped Lily's bag on the ground and stormed away.

"Wait, Christian, I don't …" Lily called, but he ignored her and just kept walking. "Stupid Potter, has to ruin my relationships even when he's not around."

* * *

**ALICE**

_Dear Alice,_

_Christian and I split up and it's all Potter's fault. I find it uncanny that he can ruin my relationships with guys even when he's not even remotely close to me! _

_I heard the news about your brothers and I'd like to extend my congratulations for their promotion in the ranks of Aurors. _

_I suppose that's all, I'll see you next week on the train and I'll explain everything better then. I just don't want to write the whole thing down right now because I'm afraid that I'll start crying again. I've only just stopped and I think that's because I've dried up completely and have no more water for crying. I think I'll go replenish them with a glass of pink lemonade. Take care._

_Love,_

_Lily_

Alice sighed as she put down the note from Lily. She wished that she could convince her friend that James Potter was really a nice person, but she found that task nearly impossible, especially since this latest development, whatever that happened to be about. Alice then opened the letter from Marlene, hoping that it would cheer her up.

_**Dear Alice,**_

_**I spent the day at James' yesterday and we had an interesting talk in between swimming and playing Quidditch. We decided to split up. It seems best for the both of us, because I think he still fancies Lily and I've already turned my eye to another person, even though he's been just rotten to me lately.**_

_**On a happier subject, I heard about Gideon's and Fabian's promotions. Tell them the McKinnon family sends their congratulations! I'll see you on the train next week!**_

_**Love Now and Always,**_

_**Marlene McKinnon**_

"Well, isn't that happy?" Alice commented to herself. "Both of them ended their summer relationships on the same day."

Alice, now slightly sad that her friends' relationships hadn't turned out the way they had wanted them to, decided to go take a walk through the streets of Paris, where she was staying with her grandmother for the summer. So she grabbed her camera, applied some sun block and hurried out the door after bidding her grandmother goodbye.

Alice walked to her favorite park just down the street and began walking around and taking pictures, sometimes of people and sometimes of the trees and animals that inhabited the park. For some reason, taking the pictures relaxed her and she thought about the year ahead. It was getting closer and closer to fifth year, the year they would take their OWLs, and she wondered absently if there would be a considerable jump in the amount of homework in the next year. She really, really hoped there wouldn't be.

* * *

**TRAIN: 4th YEAR**

"You have got to be kidding me if you think that I'm going to sit there!" Dorcas exclaimed as she walked into the compartment inhabited by the Marauders and the girls.

"I'll sit there!" Lily exclaimed, a flicker of hope passing her features at the thought of getting away from James Potter. The only reason she stayed on the same train with him was so that she could stay with her friends. Otherwise, she'd rather walk to Hogwarts than sit next to him on the entire train ride to the school.

"No you won't!" James exclaimed, grabbing hold of Lily around the waist and forcing her to sit back down beside him. "I need help with my Charms homework!"

"Let go of me or I'll punch you in the face, Potter!" Lily exclaimed, squirming to get out of James grasp, but his Quidditch toned arms proved to be too strong for her petite frame to escape.

"Calm down, Evans. I just need a little bit of help on my Charms, then you can go make out with Malfoy or whatever it is you want to do so badly."

"EWW!" Marlene exclaimed, miming throwing-up as she did so. "Malfoy?! James, don't even joke about that!"

"I don't know," Lily replied, smoothing her skirt indignantly as soon as James had released her, "I may rather do that then sit here with him."

"I have an idea," Dorcas spoke up from where she still stood in the doorway, "Let's refocus our attention back to me and my problem of a seat. I am NOT going to sit on Peter's candy wrapper collection!"

"You'd better not, or… or… or…" Peter thought for a second and then exclaimed, "Or I'll sic Sirius on you!"

"Sirius is too busy staring at Marlene to be sicced on anyone," Lily pointed out, causing Sirius to glare at her and Marlene to blush slightly.

"Why are you staring at me?" Marlene asked.

"Yeah, Sirius, why **_are_** you staring at Marlene?" Remus prodded, trying to get Sirius to ask her out.

"I was staring at her because…" Sirius was spared the problem of answering by Dorcas interrupting again.

"Hey now! I want to know why Sirius was staring at Marlene as much as the next person, but really now! Can we solve my seat dilemma first?" Dorcas threw her hands up in the air.

"I've got an idea," Lily announced, "How about the girls go find a new compartment and the Marauders stay here?!"

"Nice try, Evans, but you're not leaving until you help me with my Charms." James replied.

"Well, I can't help until you pull out your bloody book, and besides, when have you ever done homework before?"

James looked offended, "You wound me, Miss Evans."

"Yeah, well, I'm off to snog Malfoy like you suggested. Have a nice life, Potter." Lily stood up and bounded over top of Marlene's head (she was sitting on the floor) and was out the door before anyone could even make a grab for her. Dorcas just let her pass.

"So, about that seat?" Dorcas asked the compartment at random. She was answered with glaring looks.

* * *

**Halloween: 4th Year**

"Lily, I bet you haven't even looked at that list of yours since the end of last year." Alice commented the morning of Halloween.

Lily sat up from her position hanging off the side of her bed, "Nope, I haven't and I don't need to. Potter is just as annoying as ever so I'm in no danger of having to date him."

"Why don't you check and see. I want to see what ludicrous things you've thought up to add onto that stupid list." Marlene announced, "When will you realize that you and James Potter were meant to be?"

Lily was about to reply that Marlene had once thought that she and Potter were meant to be, but she bit her tongue, not wanting to cause a fight. So, instead, she looked at Lily's List which was still posted on the wall by her bed.

X 1) Lose the glasses, they make him look dumber than he already does

X 2) Make a top grade in the class

X 3) Talk about something other than Quidditch

X 4) Actually grow taller than Lily

X 5) Sustain a horrible Quidditch injury and not play in a game but go to the match and cheer the team on anyway

X 6) Refer to Alice Prewett as something other than 'Gideon and Fabian's sister' or the ever popular 'Prewett'

X 7) Stop messing up his already messy hair all the time so that it looks like he's just stepped off his broomstick

8) Learn to walk around the school instead of strutting everywhere

9) Get Remus Lupin out of trouble instead of into it

X 10) Date a girl other than a bimbo

X 11) Break up with girl mentioned in #10 for some good reason other than 'she wasn't a good kisser'

"Oh great, just GREAT!" Lily exclaimed as she read the list through several times, "There are only two things separating me from having to date James Potter!"

"What's that Lils?" Marlene asked, running over to look for herself. "So numbers 1-7 are crossed off as well as 10&11?"

"Yes," Lily groaned, "All I'm depending on is that Potter won't get Remus out of trouble and that he won't learn to walk properly instead of like he has a big stick shoved up his butt!"

The other girls laughed at Lily's distress and told her that it would be okay. She only had to go on one date with him after all.

* * *

**HALLOWEEN NIGHT: 4TH YEAR**

"Okay, so here's the plan," James muttered to his fellow Marauders at the feast that night.

"James, stop looking over at Evans!" Sirius exclaimed, "Her hair is still the same color as it was two seconds ago!"

"I'm not looking at Evans!" James protested, but weakly because he had been and everyone of them knew it.

"James, you're not going to impress her by doing this." Remus pointed out.

"And why not?" Sirius asked, "It was one of my more brilliant ideas!"

"You know as well as I do that Lily isn't one to be awed by the flashy pranks you two love to pull so much. Especially when it has something to do with pie—"

Remus was cut off abruptly as James and Sirius both clapped their hands over his mouth.

"Shut it, Remus!" Sirius exclaimed, "What are you trying to do? Tip everyone's favorite person off?"

"Remus wasn't tipping anyone off. He was just going to say that Evans wouldn't be impressed by Snivellus' pie exploding!" Peter squeaked, rather loudly.

"Shh, Pete!" James exclaimed, shoving a piece of pumpkin pie into his friend's mouth, "We don't want him to hear the plan!"

"Borree!" Peter muttered around the pie in his mouth.

"That's okay, Pete. I don't think he heard," Sirius replied, "But remember, don't go around saying our plans out loud. We wouldn't want the Slytherins getting word of the explosive dessert we have planned for them."

Remus pulled James and Sirius' hands off his mouth, "Like I was saying, Lily isn't going to go for this kind of gesture, James. She doesn't want you pranking people in her name. She'd be much happier if you stopped pranking all together!"

James made a face, "I doubt it. But if this doesn't work then I'll try one of your 'gestures' later on. Oh, this is going to be UH-mazing!"

The Marauders eagerly turned to the Slytherin table to await the explosions of the Pumpkin Pie, which didn't come.

"It should happen any second now," Sirius commented, and the others nodded in agreement, but the Slytherins ate all of their pie without a single explosion taking place.

"Maybe Remus did the charm wrong." James suggested, turning to his own pie and picking up his fork to take a bite.

"Nope, it worked fine when Sirius and Peter tested it this morning," Remus replied, also getting ready to take a bite.

"I don't know what happened," Sirius admitted, "But I do know that at least I get to eat my own Pumpkin Pie now."

And with that sentence all four boys stuck their forks into their pieces of pie, causing them to explode all over themselves.

"ARGH!!" Sirius bellowed, "MY HAIR, IT HAS PUMPKIN IN IT!!!"

Peter squeaked and flipped backwards off the bench and landed on his back on the stone floor.

Remus calmly wiped the pumpkin from his eyes and tasted it, "Delicious!"

James let out a bellow of surprise and then took off his glasses, wiped the pie off of them and replaced them, "Well, that was exciting. I guess we know what happened now. We put them at the wrong table."

"You know what they say," Remus commented, "The best laid plans of mice and men, after all."

James glanced down the table to see Lily struggling to hold in her laughter, presumably at the exploding pies that had covered her fellow 4th year Gryffindors. "At least Evans is amused."

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, Mr. Pettigrew, and Mr. Lupin!" Professor McGonagall stood behind them, and she was anything but amused. "My office NOW!"

The boys glanced at each other and then scrambled so as not to be the last Marauder in the Great Hall. Peter, who was always a bit slow on the uptake, was actually the first out of the Great Hall, due to his strategic position on the floor. James, however, had not managed to get all the pie off his glasses, so his vision was still a tad smudgy, causing him to run into the doorframe, bounce off it, and land on his butt in the middle of the Great Hall.

The school went silent as Sirius and Remus sprinted over to him, yanked him up by the armpits and then proceeded to sprint with the slightly dazed James out of the Great Hall and towards McGonagall's office.

This, in turn, caused the first unrestrained laughter in the school to burst forth from Lily Evans. Soon, her friends had joined in and only a moment later did the rest of the school join in the laughter at the Marauder's backfired prank. Even Dumbledore chuckled softly to himself at the mishap.

* * *

_**Okay, so there we go, that's the end of 3rd and begining of 4th, YAY, we're getting to the good stuff now, I'm super excited about that, plus it's my Sweet Sixteen in nine days!!! WOOT!!! Okay, so, I'll post the next chap soon! I love you all, my readers! **_

_**Please review!!!**_

_**Love From,**_

_**MotherCrumpet**_


	19. Chapter 19: A 'Grown Up' James

**_Thought I'd give this to you as a sort of 'stocking stuffer'... for those of you who celebrate Christmas. Those of you who don't, apply it to your own holiday or just think of it as a special treat!_**

**_The problem with this treat? Yeah, wrote it today, so Michelle hasn't betaed it yet, therfore please excuse the gramatical and spelling mistakes that she so kindly fixes for me and you before you all get a peek at it!_**

**HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!!!! _and look, I'm seasonal! For the first chunk anyway..._ **

* * *

Christmas: 4TH Year

"Pah," Lily complained, throwing her Potions book, gently mind you, onto the table on Christmas Eve.

"What is it?" Alice asked, looking at her friend with concern.

"It's bothering me again!" Lily exclaimed, "What if Potter finally learns not to walk around with that annoying strut of his? I'll be forced to**_ DATE_** him!!!"

"Don't worry about it Lils, James and you are meant for each other," Alice soothed, causing Lily to slam her head down onto the table with a **THWACK**. "Everyone knows it but you."

"Mh nohly mohve thh chames," Lily said into the table.

"What did you say Lily?" Alice asked, peering at her friend nervously, for the Marauders had just walked through the Portrait Hole and Lily had yet to notice them.

"I said 'He only loves'-" Lily broke off with a slight yelp as she noticed James had entered the Common Room. She snapped her emerald eyes closed, her newest plan to thwart the system of the list. Her current theory was that if she didn't SEE James stop strutting everywhere, then he WOULDN'T stop strutting everywhere, at least in her mind, therefore it wouldn't be checked off the list, leaving her free to refuse to date him in whichever way she chose.

"Why does Evans have her eyes closed?" Sirius asked, cocking his head to the side in confusion.

Remus looked over to where Alice was trying to coax Lily to open her eyes and Lily was refusing and trying to stand up to go upstairs. He raised an eyebrow as Alice sighed and let Lily stand up. Lily then started over towards the stairs, ran into the couch, and flipped completely over it, landing on her back on the floor with a **THUMP**!

"Evans, what in Bloody Hell are you doing?" James asked as the redhead shook her head in confusion and began to crawl towards the dormitory staircase, her eyes still firmly closed.

Lily's response was to crawl faster, a sort of sprint-crawl if you will. James walked calmly over to her and stepped on her robes, causing the petite girl to stop in her tracks.

"Get off!" She cried, reaching blindly for James' leg, planning to throw him off balance or, if necessary, bite him.

"What are you doing?" James asked, his calm tone a rather shocking contrast to her frantic one.

"Going upstairs!" She snapped, "Now let me go!"

"Why are you crawling?"

"None of you business!"

"Why are you crawling?"

"Potter! If you don't let me go right now, I swear-"

"Lily, remember we instigated a Less Anger Policy!" Alice reminded quickly.

"The LAP can go jump off the North Astronomy tower for all its good for!" Lily exclaimed, "Potter, GET OFF!!!"

"You want a lap to commit suicide?" Peter asked in confusion.

"No, Pete, she wants a LAP to commit suicide." Sirius explained, not really understanding what she was talking about either. "With capital letters, understand?"

"Ah," Peter thought for a second, "I don't get it."

"Now that you mention it, neither do I," Sirius shrugged, "Want to get some food from the kitchens?"

"Okay!" Peter and Sirius turned from the strange scene before them and walked out of the Common Room.

Meanwhile, Lily was still screaming at James and James was still calmly asking her why she was crawling.

"I like to crawl, ALRIGHT?" Lily bellowed, having finally found James' leg and beginning to push it. Unbeknownst to her, he was now standing on both sides of her. The two were in a very compromising situation if McGonagall or one of the Prefects walked in.

"It makes you look stupid," James commented, as if talking about the weather.

"Maybe I **LIKE** to look stupid!"

"Your comebacks are not up to their usual standards, Evans."

"Your face looks like the rear end of a Thestral, but you don't hear me complaining, do you?"

"There we go, that's better." James grinned lazily, "You still haven't explained why you're crawling to your dormitory with your eyes closed."

"Does it matter?" Lily asked, tired of trying to make James fall over and debating whether to bite him or not.

"Not really," James replied, "I'd still ask you out no matter what you said, so no worries there."

"I don't want to see you not strutting, because then I'd have to date you." Lily replied honestly, deciding against biting him for fear of getting some strange and unheard of disease.

James laughed, "No, really."

Lily shrugged and made up a lie, "Alice's spell reflected off the mirror and hit me in the eye, so I can't open them."

"Okay." James stepped off her robes, allowing her to start crawling towards the staircase again.

"Okay? Is that it? You're not going to ask me out or anything?"

"Evans, will you go out with me?"

"NO, you sick, demented, idiot!" Lily exclaimed.

James shrugged and started away, "Oh, and by the way Evans, those are the stairs to the boy's dormitories."

Lily's scream in response was heard around the school, causing temporary hearing loss in a few of the castle's occupants and Dumbledore to chuckle softly as he poured himself a cup of tea and ate a lemon drop.

* * *

**SUMMER: 5TH YEAR**

"Look at him Lily!" Marlene exclaimed as the soon to be fifth year Gryffindor girls sat outside the ice cream shop catching up and watching passersby.

"Marlene, you have problems if you think I'm going to comment on him. You may think he's cute, and then you realize that he happens to be that third year Hufflepuff that had the really bad acne at then end of last year."

"Really?" Alice peered at him from her seat. "Sorry Marlene, but I think Lily's right."

Lily nodded and then went paler than her already rather pale complexion, "Is that Potter?"

The other girls whirled around to look where Lily was staring to be met with the sight of James Potter.

"Yeah, that's the one." Marlene replied, "He's grown up over the summer hasn't he?"

Lily's mouth fell open in reply, for the already stunningly attractive James Potter had, in fact, 'grown up' over the summer. He was no longer tall and lanky looking, but perfectly filled in with what appeared to be pure muscle. His facial features looked more like a young man's rather than a boy's and his messy hair was slightly longer than it had been at the end of last year causing him to look, if possible, even more like he had just stepped off his broomstick. And not in a bad way either.

"Lils!" Alice said sharply, waving her hand in front of her friend's face, "Lily, Hogwarts to Lily!"

Lily shook her head slightly, as if clearing it, "Sorry Alice, I was a bit distracted."

"By James Potter!" Marlene sang.

"Why don't you forget that last requirement?" Emmeline suggested.

"Eww, no!" Lily exclaimed, "I was just thinking that Peter Pettigrew looks less, Peter Pettigrew like."

"Lily thinks James is hot!" Dorcas teased.

Marlene opened her mouth to say something and then her eyes bulged out. She had just spotted Sirius Black, and he was looking better than ever this year.

"Oh no, we've lost two of them!" Alice exclaimed.

"Look, is that Frank Longbottom?" Emmeline asked, pointing at nothing.

"I don't care," Alice replied, "And where did you think you saw him? Because I was looking for him, and I didn't see him."

"You have NOT lost me!" Lily sent a glare towards her best friend, "I was just surprised, that's all."

"Lily, you fancy him, now admit it."

"Who does Evans fancy?"

The girls whirled around to see the Marauders standing directly behind them. Lily turned a rather suspicious shade of red and Marlene went slightly pale.

"Hello Remus," Emmeline smiled, "How was your summer?"

"It was pretty good, actually. How about yours?"

"Oh, pretty much the same as usual. We went to the US and saw the most darling little wizarding village."

Remus opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off by James, "Who does Evans fancy?"

"Jealous Potter?" Lily asked, finally finding her voice, "It's actually none of your business."

"I make it my business. Who do you fancy?"

"You wouldn't know him."

"Is the wanker a muggle?"

"Oh, so because he's a **_muggle_**, he's not good enough?" Lily demanded.

"I didn't say that, but now that you mention it, nobody is good enough for you Evans."

"For your information, there are **_plenty_** of people who are good enough. **_I'm_** the one who's not good enough! And they were talking about YOU, you idiot!" Lily stood up rather hastily and knocked her chair over before hurrying off.

"Evans!" James called after her, "Will-"

Alice slapped her hand over James' mouth, "For once in your life, shut up!"

Then she hurried off after Lily, dragging a surprised looking Marlene in her wake.

"We'll wait here with the bags!" Emmeline cried after the girls; then she turned to the Marauders. "Way to go. You just stuck your foot in your mouth again. I know there's no way you could have known, but there was an incident this summer."

"What kind of incident?" Sirius asked, tearing his gaze away from Marlene.

"She fell for her summer boyfriend; then he dumped her and told her she wasn't good enough because she wasn't as rich as he was."

James sank into the chair that was previously filled by Lily and put his head in his hands, "Oh Merlin, I've really done it this time."

* * *

**AFTER OWLS: END OF FIFTH YEAR**

"I can't believe he'd do something like that!" Lily ranted. She was currently storming around the dormitories in quite the mood because of one James Potter. Plus, her list had grown and continued to grow rapidly.

X 1) Lose the glasses, they make him look dumber than he already does

X 2) Make a top grade in the class

X 3) Talk about something other than Quidditch

X 4) Actually grow taller than Lily

X 5) Sustain a horrible Quidditch injury and not play in a game but go to the match and cheer the team on anyway

X 6) Refer to Alice Prewett as something other than 'Gideon and Fabian's sister' or the ever popular 'Prewett'

X 7) Stop messing up his already messy hair all the time so that it looks like he's just stepped off his broomstick

_**8) Learn to walk around the school instead of strutting everywhere**_

X 9) Get Remus Lupin out of trouble instead of into it

X 10) Date a girl other than a bimbo

X 11) Break up with girl mentioned in #10 for some **_good_** reason other than 'she wasn't a good kisser'

_**12) Stop knicking school owned objects like that annoying snitch, especially since he's a Chaser**_

_**13) Stop flipping Severus Snape upside down and showing the school his knickers for no reason other than that Snape was born and Potter's mates were bored**_

_**14) Allow Remus Lupin to confess to Lily that Remus is, in fact, a werewolf**_

_**15) Confess that he's an animagi **_

_**16) Refer to Lily as 'Lily' instead of 'Evans'**_

_**17) Allow Lily to feel comfortable referring to him as 'James' instead of 'Potter'**_

_**18) Stop calling Lily 'his girl'**_

_**19) Stop beating up Lily's 'boyfriends'**_

_**20) Stop asking Lily out in front of her 'boyfriend' or while she has one & Stop asking Lily out while he has a 'girlfriend'**_

"LILY!" Dorcas bellowed, tackling her friend to the floor and successfully ending her rant, "Take a breath. James _wasn't_ thinking!"

Lily opened her mouth to continue her rant, but Marlene cut her off, "Now I know that James shouldn't have flipped Snape upside down and tortured him, but you shouldn't have lost your temper with him and said all those things."

Lily opened her mouth again, this time to object but Marlene continued, "I'm proud of you for standing up to him and letting him know that what he was doing was wrong, but Lily Marie Evans, you are going to go apologize to him right now for what you said because saying them makes you no better than him. You have to teach by example Lily, trust me!"

Lily opened her mouth, but no words came out. She tried to reply again, but to no avail. Why was it that Lily Evans was suddenly struck dumb? It was because she realized that Marlene was right, she had to apologize to James Potter, and she didn't like it one bit.

"I loathe you sometimes," Lily informed her friend as she left the dorm room in search of James Potter.

"Trust me Lils, the feeling is mutual!" Marlene called after her friend just as the door was shutting.

Lily walked like a convict on the way to the death sentence. But somehow, the dragging of her feet only seemed to get her down to the Common Room more quickly. She looked around and spotted him sitting sulkily near the fire. Despite what appeared to be their best efforts, the other Marauders were failing to cheer James up.

"What do you want Evans?" James asked sharply as Lily walked over, "Come to call me some more rude names?"

"I'm sorry," Lily announced, not struggling nearly as hard as she would have thought to utter the most rarely used phrase in her vocabulary.

"Are you mocking me Evans?" James asked.

"No, I'm saying that I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said those things in front of everyone. I don't really think that about you, it's just you make me so…" Lily struggled for the right word.

"Frustrated?" James suggested, thinking of the way Lily made him feel when she was being particularly difficult.

"Yes, that's the word." Lily replied, "Anyways, I've got some packing to do, so if you'll excuse me…"

Lily turned and walked away, leaving a very confused but much happier James Potter in her wake.

"I'm sorry too, Evans!" James called, just as she started climbing the stairs to the dormitories.

Lily smiled at her secret feeling that perhaps, just perhaps, she really _was_ starting to fancy James Potter.

* * *

**_Oh dear, we are blazing through the story now, aren't we? Don't worry, we're preparing to slow down a wee bit for sixth and seventh years. Hope you're not TOO bored with the story or anything..._**

**_Would have had this done sooner, but Monday was my Birthday and Wednesday I was getting a CAT SCAN. I'm okay now though, so no big. Except I missed finals on Wednesday and have to make them up in Januaray, after I forget everything over Christmas. Yay life!_**

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	20. Chapter 20: the OTHER Quidditch Captain

**_This chapter is dedicated to those lovely people who have placed this story on alert, on their favorites list and in their C2s... thanks so much for making my day a little brighter! Snaps for you all!!!!_****

* * *

**

Diagon Alley: Just Before Sixth Year:Guys

"Prongs," Remus called across Flourish and Blotts as the bell tinkled to signal another customer had just entered the shop, "What do you think about me telling the other Gryffindors about my…"

"Your furry little problem?" James asked, looking up from a book and walking over to put it back on the shelf.

"Yeah, my 'furry little problem'." Remus echoed.

"I'd look in the corner there, dear. If you've got a particularly nasty pet rabbit, then I'm sure you could find something about it in the pet section." The nosy bookshop witch cut into the conversation.

"Thank you," Remus replied politely, crossing over to the rather secluded section and pretending to look for books on rabbits.

"I dunno, Moony," James thought for a second. "I'm not sure that the others would take it well."

Sirius and Peter followed their friends into the section of books and the four Marauders talked quietly, whilst pretending to look for books about notoriously behaved rabbits.

"Lily's the brightest witch I've ever met. If you lot figured it out, I'm sure she did." Remus commented.

"She seems kind of oblivious. I mean she doesn't even notice that Prongs is madly in love with her," Sirius replied, "No offence, Prongs!"

"None taken, Padfoot. I still can't believe that she thinks I only like to annoy her." James muttered, more to himself than to the others.

"Yes, well, I think it might upset Alice too," Sirius continued, ignoring James' rambling nonsense.

Remus looked thoughtful, "What do you think, Wormtail?"

"Huh?" Peter looked up from the book on rabbits that he had found, "Uh, I think you ought to get this one. It has all the proper information for 'training your furry little problem'."

"Wormtail, I don't have a rabbit." Remus explained slowly, "I'm talking about whether or not to tell the girls and Frank about my erewolf-way roblem-pay."

"What's that?" Peter asked, cocking his head to the side and looking rather confused, as usual.

"It's pig latin!" Sirius exclaimed, "I'll translate! Now, you take the first letter and tack it onto the end and add a 'ay' to it… That means…" Sirius thought long and hard. Then he screwed up his face and counted something on his fingers and began writing letters in the air. Finally he sighed and looked defeated, "I have no idea what Moony just said."

Remus sighed, "I was referring to the reason for our monthly excursions as our alternate identities."

"Oh, you were talking about the midnight buffet!" Peter exclaimed, "But that's twice a month… every first and third Wednesday."

"The OTHER monthly excursions, Wormtail," Remus sighed again.

Suddenly Sirius' face dawned with comprehension, "You said your erewolf-way roblem-pay!"

"Yes, I did!"

"Okay, let me explain this," Sirius turned to Peter and took a deep breath, "Remus is talking about a large stack of blueberry pancakes dripping with maple syrup and oozing steam."

Something clicked within Peter's brain, "Oh, the erewolf-way roblem-pay!"

"I'm not even going to ask why that worked, Pad," Remus commented, raising an eyebrow.

"Why shouldn't it?" Sirius asked, "It IS the codename, after all!"

James suddenly stopped muttering, "A large stack of blueberry pancakes dripping with maple syrup and oozing steam? Is that the codename you're referring to?"

"Yes," Sirius replied.

"Okay, I knew it was either that or a hot dog on a steaming bun, hold the relish, double the ketchup and mustard and top it with chili plus a side of fries."

"Ah, yes."

"We need shorter codenames."

"I concur."

"Did you just say 'concur'?"

"I believe I did."

"Way to go, Pads! That's a real hot babe in a—"

"ENOUGH WITH THE CODES!" Remus bellowed.

"Geez, Moony. No need to get testy!" Sirius exclaimed, straightening his robes. "What were we talking about?"

Remus sighed, "A large stack of blueberry pancakes dripping with maple syrup and oozing steam."

"Ah, yes." Sirius pondered for a second, "I still say no."

"What about you, Wormtail?" Remus asked.

Peter thought for a second, then he thought for another second, and another, and another, and concluded with, "I'll side with Padfoot."

"Wormtail, do you even know what a large stack of blueberry pancakes dripping with maple syrup and oozing steam means?"

"Nope," Peter replied matter-of-factly, "But I DO know what a real hot babe in a—"

Remus didn't hear any more because he quickly carted his load of books over to the counter to buy them.

* * *

**HOGWARTS EXPRESS: BEGINNING OF 6TH YEAR**

"Lily, honestly, you haven't seen or heard from or about James all summer! How could you have possibly accumulated a total of twenty-four things for your list?" Alice asked as the pair climbed onto the Hogwarts Express.

"It's mere the thought of him that infuriates me," Lily replied thoughtfully, although she was starting to wonder herself if she was just putting up barriers to keep herself safe. But safe from what? Safe from James Potter, who she was beginning to think really was in love with her?

Lily shook her head to clear the thoughts bouncing off the wall, "You don't know for sure that there are twenty-four things on my list. I could be joking with you. Besides, eleven of them have been crossed out."

"Okay, but still. That's thirteen things that James has to change before you'll date him. Lily, if I didn't know you better, I'd say you were afraid of being too close to James Potter." Alice was quiet for a minute, "I thought only ten things were crossed off, and why won't you show me the list?"

"Because you'll kill me." Lily replied seriously.

"Why?"

"Because."

"Well, wasn't it only ten?"

"Now it's eleven."

"What else got crossed off?"

"He doesn't strut," Lily replied, shoving her way past some fourth years and heading off to find an empty compartment.

"Ahh."

"Yes, that's what I said too."

"Lily! Alice!" Marlene called from inside one of the compartments, "We're going to have to share again!"

"No!" Lily exclaimed, "I wanted to tell you something!"

"Tell away, Evans." James had come out into the hallway and grabbed Lily's trunk, hefting it easily into the luggage rack in the compartment.

"She can't tell, you lot," Dorcas informed the Marauders and Frank, "So make yourself scarce for a couple minutes."

"This was our compartment first!" Sirius protested.

"Please, Sirius," Marlene begged. "It'll only take a minute for us to catch up properly."

"Ohhh-kaay," Sirius stood up and grabbed hold of James and Peter, "You heard Marlene, it'll only take a minute."

Remus chuckled softly as he followed his friends out, smiling at Emmeline, who had rolled her eyes at Sirius' quick response to Marlene. Emmeline smiled back, turning a light shade of pink at Remus' grin.

"Okay, now that you lot are done flirting," Lily eyed Marlene and Emmeline with mock severity, "I have an announcement to make."

"What's that Lily?" Marlene asked, sitting down.

"It's only just about the most wonderful thing to have happened for a long time."

"What's she going on about, Alice?" Dorcas asked impatiently.

"I haven't the slightest…." Alice grinned suddenly, "You didn't say yes, did you, Lily?"

Lily just nodded and Alice squealed, jumping up and running over to hug her friend.

"What's going on?" Dorcas demanded grumpily, she didn't appreciate being left out of things.

"Yeah, I'm confused," Marlene added. Emmeline just smiled politely.

"Lily's dating Adam Becker!" Alice exclaimed, "You know, the hot Quidditch Captain?"

"James is a hot Quidditch Captain," Marlene pointed out.

"Adam is in Ravenclaw," Lily replied.

"So?"

"So, he's smart and he can't come and bother me while I'm trying to sleep like Potter sees fit to do sometimes."

"He comes and wakes us up for Quidditch," Dorcas pointed out.

"By dumping ice water on MY bed?" Lily asked, "You would think he would know by now which bed is mine and which isn't!"

"You scream the loudest. It'd be a waste of water to dump it on my bed. You'd have to dump it on Marlene, too, in the end."

"Congratulations, Lily," Emmeline grinned, "I'm just glad you're dating again."

"Me too," Marlene agreed, then added softly, "I just wish it was a different Quidditch Captain."

* * *

**6TH YEAR: STILL ON THE HOGWARTS EXPRESS**

"Hello Potter, have you by any chance seen Lily Marie?"

James turned to see a handsome boy of seventeen who looked vaguely familiar standing behind him in the hallway. He was a tad bit shorter than James himself was and looked nearly like a replica. He had the same jet black colored hair, although his was combed slightly more neatly, and his face possessed similar features. The most noticeable difference, however, was that his eyes were a deep shade of blue rather than hazel.

"Have I seen who?" James asked, trying to place the boy.

"Lily Marie," The teen replied, "My girlfriend. She's in your house."

"I don't know all of the girls in Gryffindor, but what does she look like?" James asked, raking his mind now for where he had seen this guy before and who the hell Lily Marie was.

"You know her, I know you do because you love to annoy her. She's petite and has red hair and a matching temper, at least when you're involved, and—"

"Red hair?" James asked, "Hold on a sec mate, are you talking about Lily Evans?"

"Yes, of course. Who else would Lily Marie be?"

"And you said you're dating her?"

"Yes."

"Lily Marie Evans? Gryffindor prefect?"

"Yes."

"Lily Evans? The red head who hit me in front of half the school at the end of last year? You're DATING her?"

"Yes. Do you know where she is? Because if you don't I think I'll be off to find someone who does."

"She's in the usual compartment, last one on the train. But you say you're **_dating_** her?"

"Yes, is that so hard to believe? I'm trying to be polite, but you are really testing my patience, Potter."

"What's your name?" James asked, trying to grasp the situation but finding that he was not quite capable of it.

"Adam Becker, Ravenclaw Quidditch Captain."

James nodded and Adam started to walk down the hall towards the back of the train.

"Hold on a second mate, I think she went to meet with the Prefects. If I were you, I'd come back in an hour. Evans always seems to be the last out of those meetings." James called after him.

"Thank you." Adam replied, "If you see her, would you tell her I came looking for her and am in the compartment with the rest of the seventh year Ravenclaws?"

"Whatever you say, mate," James replied offhandedly, having no intention whatsoever to pass along the message. "I'm sure she'll come around before too long."

Adam nodded and walked off in the opposite direction of Lily's compartment.

"Bloody imbecile," James shook his head, "Asking me where Evans was and thinking I'd actually pass on a message from her boy-toy."

James snorted and leaned casually on the compartment door, waiting for Sirius' signal shriek from inside telling him it was time to rescue him from the fan-club.

"Oh Jamesy!" an annoying feminine voice called from behind him.

"Oh, hello, Millie," James tried to appear as if he wasn't desperately looking for an escape route, "Fancy seeing you here."

"Jamesy, you promised me you'd come and entertain me on the train ride." Millie, a Hufflepuff seventh year, tried her best to pull a puppy dog face. Unfortunately, James had to suppress a grimace for her best was frighteningly painful looking.

"Oh, erm," James looked about wildly, hoping for a help to just materialize through the walls of the train.

"How about I find a compartment for our… games? Hmm?"

"Er," James grinned in relief, "Yeah that sounds like a good idea. Er, so I'll see you in a few minutes?"

"Okay, you hunk of a Gryffindor." Millie smacked him on the chest in what she thought was a flirtatious manner causing James to bend double in pain and lack of air supply.

"Bye," James wheezed with an effort and a sort of wave as he tried to stand up.

He watched Millie walk off, her hips swaying side to side in a manner that was sure to send several unfortunate first years flying were they to find themselves in the wrong place during her passing. Then he sighed with relief and once again leaned against the doorway to the compartment, this time uneasily, hoping that Sirius would hurry up and scream like a first year Hufflepuff girl already so that he could return to their compartment where it was safe. Well, relatively safe. Really, he supposed it depended on the mood Lily was in and if there would ensure any more verbal sparring like after OWLs.

James shuddered slightly as the thought passed his mind. Then, when Sirius did utter his 'war cry', (read high pitched squeal that would rival piglets) James was so on edge from his encounters that he jumped nearly six feet into the air and smacked his head rather soundly on the roof of the train. Cursing loudly, he threw open the door to the compartment in order to save Sirius who was backed up onto the luggage rack and had resorted to poking fan-girls with his wand to keep them away.

"Prongs, where have you BEEN!" Sirius exclaimed, dealing one unfortunate girl a rather sharp poke in the eye.

"Sorry, Pad," James replied, "But I'm going to have to drag you away from your best friends here. Evans has found herself a boyfriend."

"WHAT?" Sirius dove out of the luggage rack and landed on top of James, propelling both of them out of the compartment and into the hallway where they landed hard on the floor. Rather, James landed hard on the floor and Sirius landed hard on James.

Sirius hopped up and closed the compartment door on the befuddled fan-girls. "That'll hold them for the rest of the trip. Not a very bright lot if you know what I mean."

The poor girls in question were frantically searching the compartment for Sirius and muttering things like, 'It's almost like magic!' in reverent voices.

James nodded.

"So, what's this about Evans having a boyfriend?" Sirius asked, cocking his head to the side questioningly.

James shrugged, "Some guy came round claiming to be her boyfriend. Says he's captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team."

"Adam Becker?" Sirius asked, "According to my posse in there," he jerked his head back toward the fan-girl compartment, "he's the fourth hottest guy in the school."

"After us and Remus?"

"After us and Remus."

"Poor guy, not quite up to par." James grinned, glad he was considered above this guy in something.

"Lucky for you. You can use that Potter charm to win her over. It worked for your dad."

"Ah, but this is Lily Evans, I've tried the patented Potter charm. It doesn't work. Besides, even Dad had to do something to convince Mum to date him."

"Then start convincing." Sirius's face turned dead serious, a look James was unaccustomed to seeing there, "Because I hear that Becker is a bigger womanizer than I am. He'll tear Evans to shreds."

James' eyes went hard, "Not if I have anything to do with it."

* * *

**_AN/ don't worry guys, the pace is slowing down a LOT from last chapter now... let's just wait and see what's going to happen next, shall we? Please review..._**

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	21. Chapter 21: Where is Lover boy?

6th Year: Hogwarts Express 

"Hey Evans, can you chuck that pasty over here?" James called from his seat opposite Lily in their train compartment.

"You mean these?" Lily asked, picking up one of the plastic wrapped Pumpkin Pasties and waving it.

"Yeah. Be a babe and chuck it here, will you?"

Lily grinned and pulled her arm back. She threw the pasty as hard as she could and hit James square in the side of the head before falling to the floor.

"Ow," James moaned, rubbing his temple. "What was that for?"

"You called me babe."

"No, I clearly said, 'be a babe.' Besides, I don't think the truth warrants a Pumpkin Pasty to the side of the head."

"Are you calling me a babe?"

"Are you going to hit me again?"

"I'm out of ammo."

"Then yes, I'm calling you a babe. Want to go out sometime, babe?"

"She can't," Marlene spoke up from her own seat on the floor. "Lily's dating Adam Becker."

"Speaking of Lily dating Adam, where is lover-boy?" Dorcas asked, glancing up from her last minute homework copying spree.

"I don't know." Lily replied absently, "He was going to come find me on the train."

"Wait, back up," Sirius demanded, "You're dating who?"

"Adam Becker."

"Adam Becker, the captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch Team? The fourth hottest guy in school? The ass who's a bigger womanizer than me?"

"You're not a womanizer Sirius," Marlene said quickly. "That would definitely not mean what you think it does. You're flighty, yes. Womanizer, no."

Sirius looked at her for a second as if searching for hidden meaning, "Okay … I'm not one, but Becker is."

Lily looked doubtful for a second and then her eyes flashed angrily, "He is not."

"I didn't want to say anything Lily," Emmeline said quietly, "but I've heard things about him. And they're not all about his Quidditch abilities."

The Marauders all nodded their agreement, except for James who watched Lily for her reaction.

"All of you?" Lily asked quietly.

They all nodded again.

Lily went pale, "Oh."

"It's not necessarily all true, Lily," Alice suggested, "And maybe he's changed."

Lily seemed to be at a loss as to what to do.

"You can't break up with him over rumors," James said, finally voicing his opinion, even if it wasn't what anyone else expected him to say.

"Why can't she?" Dorcas demanded.

"Because, Evans trusts people. She's not one to break up with a guy she likes enough to date over some stupid rumors. If she did, then who would she date in this stupid school? She dates guys rarely enough. There's no point in breaking it off because of a rumor that may or may not be true."

Lily couldn't decide whether to glare at James or nod in agreement. He was only telling the truth, but the blunt way he said it … Actually, she realized that she found it kind of refreshing because he wasn't tiptoeing around her like most people did. He was being frank, to the point, and dead honest without even a hint of diplomacy, just the way she would have put it.

"He does have a point," Emmeline acknowledged.

"Just be careful, Evans," Sirius warned gruffly. "I don't want you sniveling for weeks on end about Becker."

"Wow. Thanks, Sirius," Lily replied rolling her eyes. "I think that bordered on concern."

"Anytime," Sirius said shortly, turning back to his pile of food and raising an eyebrow at James as if asking what he thought he was doing.

"Don't worry," James mouthed.

"She'd better not get hurt," Sirius warned, "or you'll never get a chance."

James shook his head, "She's not going to get hurt."

Marlene watched their silent conversation curiously, knowing that the two were watching out for her friend and wondering what they knew. She decided to ask them about it later and turned back to her own desperate homework copying, trying to finish before the train reached its destination.

* * *

6TH Year: Welcome Feast

"Lily Marie!" A voice called as the Marauders and the Gryffindor girls entered the Great Hall. "Why didn't you come find me on the train?"

"You were supposed to come and find me." Lily replied, turning to see her boyfriend falling into step beside her.

James scowled and moved closer so that he could hear the conversation better.

"I thought … well, never mind then. I'll find you after the feast?" Adam asked, taking her hand and lacing their fingers together.

"I'll wait at the table." Lily replied, slipping her hand out and parting going around to the far side of the Gryffindor table with a little wave.

James grinned, knowing that Lily wasn't about to let anyone take advantage of her in any way, shape, or form. Well, that and the fact that she hadn't stayed with Adam to talk for any length of time to speak of meant that either she didn't trust him or that she didn't like him all that much, both of which were good for James.

James ignored the glare that Adam sent his way and followed Lily to the Gryffindor table, sliding into the seat beside her, "I was just kidding on the train you know."

Lily turned and looked at him blankly.

"When I asked you out. I had heard you had a boyfriend and I'm not stupid enough to keep beating up anyone who looks at you. I'd have to take on the entire male population of the school. And I think it's great that you're dating someone, well, unless it turns out that he really is a scumbag."

Lily opened her mouth to reply just as Dumbledore stood up and began his speech. Instead, she smiled at James and turned her attention to the headmaster.

"It's a good thing Becker can't reach you from there," Sirius observed quietly, nodding in the direction of Lily's Ravenclaw boyfriend.

James shrugged, "He'd just prove how big a scumbag he is if he were to try and beat me up. I haven't done anything."

Sirius shrugged, "He would think of something."

"So," Marlene said, leaning across the table, "What do you two know about Becker?"

"We can't talk about that now!" James hissed, jerking his head towards Lily.

Marlene rolled her eyes, "She'll never hear, Dumbledore's talking."

"Really?" Sirius asked, cocking his head to the side with interest, "Because I find it harder to not hear when Dumbledore talks."

"Really, now spill. What do you know?"

"Well," Sirius thought for a second, "We know he's the fourth hottest guy in the school."

"After us and Remus, of course," James added.

"Yes, and we know he's dated or made-out with my entire fan-club as well as much of James'. Plus, he seems to have made his way through Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff as well as the occasional venture into Slytherin and Gryffindor. In fact, I'd say that his numbers of girls rival mine, and that's saying something."

"How about compared to you?" Marlene asked, looking to James, "I find it easier to keep up with your conquests."

"I resent that!" Sirius exclaimed.

"It's true mate," James informed his friend before turning back to Marlene, "He's way past me in numbers. And as far as length of the relationship, let's just say I wouldn't be surprised if Evans is his record."

"Bloody hell," Marlene swore. "I knew I didn't like him."

"Marlene, don't swear," Lily reprimanded, making the others realize that Dumbledore had just finished his speech. "And who don't you like?"

"Slughorn," Marlene replied, thinking quickly, "James claims he assigned a huge essay to the 6th years on the very first day last year."

"Lovely, that will be an easy O," Lily grinned. "Don't worry, Marlene. I'll help you."

"Thanks Lily," Marlene sighed, sharing a quick look with James and Sirius before turning to watch the sorting.

When the feast was over, the Gryffindors were all stuffed and ready to turn in for the night.

"Coming, Lily?" Alice asked, noticing that her friend wasn't leaving the table.

"I have to wait for Adam," Lily replied.

"Want us to wait for you?" Emmeline asked.

"No, you go on. I won't be but a minute." Lily replied.

James, Sirius, and Marlene shared a look and the three of them sat back down with Lily.

"We'll wait with Lily," Marlene told the rest of the group, "You're all exhausted and I'm not the least bit tired."

Alice looked at the four Gryffindors that were still seated, "If you're sure."

"Go on," Lily waved, "It won't be very long."

Alice gave them all another suspicious glance and then hurried off to catch up with the others who had started slowly off after Marlene told them to go ahead.

"So, Becker meeting you over here?" Marlene asked, surveying the nearby crowd for the Ravenclaw.

"He's supposed to, but after he didn't turn up on the train…" Lily shrugged.

The other three shared a look. Lily was obviously skeptical after the afternoon's revelations about her new boyfriend.

"Lily Marie!" Adam exclaimed, pushing his way out of the crowd. Then he caught sight of James, Sirius, and Marlene and slipped his arm around Lily's shoulders. "You needn't have waited for her, Potter. I'm not about to abandon my girlfriend after making a promise to her. But maybe you don't understand that."

"Just waiting with a friend, Becker," James replied casually.

"Since when are you friends?" Adam laughed, "You hate each other, or rather she hates you."

"They were just waiting so I wouldn't have to walk to the tower by myself, Adam," Lily broke in, throwing James an apologetic look. "Stop being so defensive."

"I'm sorry, I just don't like my _girlfriend_ being forced to hang around people she doesn't like." It was clear he was stressing the word girlfriend to bother James. After all, it was common knowledge that James had been after Lily for ages.

"I'm not being forced to hang around anyone," Lily informed him. "And maybe I don't dislike Potter and Black anymore."

Adam laughed, "You're just trying to be polite. Come on, we've got some catching up to do."

Lily pulled away as he started to walk off, pulling her with him. "I'm tired, can we catch up tomorrow?"

"Fine, come eat breakfast with me." Adam replied with a sigh.

"Why don't you come eat with me?"

"Because I don't like all of your friends," Adam threw a significant look towards James and Sirius who were conversing in low tones with Marlene. James was watching the couple carefully.

"Okay, but next time, you're eating with me," Lily announced.

"Deal. I'll see you tomorrow." Adam glanced over and looked James in the eyes. Then he leaned down and placed a kiss on Lily's mouth. It wasn't a long kiss, but it wasn't really a quick peck either. Then he straightened up, smirked at James, and left.

"Lily!" Marlene exclaimed, snapping her fingers in front of her friend's face, "Are you okay?"

Lily blinked only to realize she was shaking. She took a deep breath and replied unsteadily, "Yeah, I'm okay. I'm just going to head back to the tower now."

The other Gryffindors shared yet another look and followed her out of the Great Hall. James jogged up to walk beside her and Sirius and Marlene fell behind talking quietly.

"So, what do you think?" Sirius asked, gesturing absently.

Marlene sighed, "I really don't want to have to say this, but I don't think Becker really likes Lily. You saw how he was egging James on."

Sirius waited for Marlene to go on, knowing she wasn't finished yet.

"It's disgusting really. I mean, look at Lily. She's gorgeous! You see how all the guys watch her, like they're entranced. She could date anyone she wanted too, but she doesn't understand that. So she gets stuck with guys like Becker."

"If you don't like Becker, then who do you want her to date?" Sirius asked, pretty sure her already knew the answer.

Sure enough, Marlene pointed at the pair in front of them. Somehow James had managed to get Lily laughing and her laughter rang through the hallway. Marlene smiled and looked sideways at Sirius, "Lily and James could both have anyone, but they deserve each other. All the guys have started looking at Lily like they're entranced, but James…"

"James has always looked at her like that." Sirius finished.

Marlene nodded, watching as James made Lily laugh again. "James has always looked at her like that," she agreed.

* * *

6TH Year: The Next Week

"It's been a week, and I haven't seen anything," Lily sighed, looking up from her essay she was working on for Professor McGonagall.

"Maybe the rumors were wrong." Alice replied, eager to take advantage of the distraction offered.

"The rumors weren't wrong," Marlene countered, "I've seen girls be torn apart by Becker. The only way I see it is that he changed. And whether it was a temporary change or a permanent one, I have no idea."

James scowled from his seat near Lily, "It'll be a permanent change as long as he's dating Lily."

Everyone turned to stare at James and Lily peered at him carefully, "I think it's James Potter. He looks and sounds like James Potter."

Sirius pinched his best friend.

"Ow! What in the name of all things pranks was that for?" James howled.

"It's him," Sirius assured everyone, folding his arms and dancing out of James' reach.

"And why, may I ask, are you so concerned with my identity?" James demanded, cross that Sirius had pinched him.

"You called me Lily." Lily informed him.

"That is your name isn't it?" James asked, "Or have you gotten it changed to another flower? Rose perhaps?"

Lily reached over and put her hand on James' forehead, "He's not running a fever."

"Are you sure?" James asked, crossing his eyes and trying to look at Lily's hand, "Because if you're wrong, I'm not going to the Hospital Wing if I start feeling bad."

"You haven't called me Lily since… Merlin, it must have been first or second year."

"Huh, imagine that." Sirius laughed, "Not calling the girl you fancy by her first name. Sorta makes you wonder, doesn't it, McKinnon?"

"Shut up, Sirius," Marlene glanced at her friend, "And stop dancing around like an idiot!"

"But if I go back to sitting where I was, Prongs'll hit me!" Sirius whined.

"Then come sit over here with me, but for Merlin's sake stop that idiotic dancing!"

Sirius grinned and happily skipped over to sit next to Marlene. Then the two turned their attention back to the rest of the group.

"I still don't see why me calling you Lily gets everyone so worked up about my health," James sulked.

"And you're not going to either. I'm afraid it's too much for your small brain capacity to handle." Lily sighed in response.

"Hey now, I resent that," James pouted, "Padfoot is the one with the small brain capacity."

"Yes, well, he's over there drooling over Marlene. I'm not saying he has a large brain capacity, I'm just saying yours isn't much larger."

"Oh, that's nice. I decide to call you by your first name and you ruin it by insulting me. I do believe I'm going to cry myself to sleep tonight now. Thanks a lot, _Lily_."

"Anytime, **_James_**."

"You're right, that does sound kind of strange." James shrugged, "Ah well, you learn something new everyday."

"That's it," Dorcas sighed as she joined the circle, "and I wish I hadn't ever learned what I learned for my new thing today."

"What's that?" Marlene asked, suddenly wondering if Sirius really was drooling. He wasn't.

"Sorry Lily, but I heard some girls talking and one of them said that she was meeting Adam for their weekly session tonight in the usual spot."

"Did they say where that 'usual spot' was?" Lily asked, turning all her attention away from James and focusing it on the messenger.

Dorcas shook her head. "All I heard was 'Charms Corridor'. Sorry, Lil."

Lily nodded, thinking hard. She knew she could ask the Marauders for help and find whatever it was that was going on in a heartbeat, but she'd rather do this on her own.

"We've got patrol tonight," Remus pointed out, "You can check the Charms Corridor and I'll take the dungeons."

"How about we don't split up tonight, Remus," Lily replied, grinning that her fellow Gryffindor had know what she was thinking but also wanted to let her know that this was her battle. "We won't do anything unusual, other than being a little more thorough than usual."

Remus nodded, "Sounds good."

The Gryffindors returned to their various homework and conversations, waiting until dinner. After dinner had ended, they sixth years once again congregated, Lily looking a little anxious. James, Sirius, and Marlene kept exchanging looks. The others just wondered what was going on and tried to ignore them. Finally, patrol time rolled around and Lily and Remus said their goodbyes and headed out of the Portrait Hole.

"Okay," Alice exclaimed as James, Sirius and Marlene shared yet another look, "I'm about to go crazy! Someone tell me what is going on with you three!"

"I don't like Becker," Marlene replied.

"I don't want to see Lily get hurt," Sirius added.

"And I agree with them both." James concluded.

"Wow, I never would have guessed that," Alice muttered sarcastically, "I meant what is with all the knowing looks."

Marlene shrugged, "I know what she's going to find and it's going to get rid of Becker."

"We warned her about him, so she's been on guard. I don't think she's going to be ripped apart," Sirius pointed out.

"Lily's not one to allow second chances," James sighed, "Trust me, I know."

Alice laughed, "Is that all? I was afraid you had set up this whole deal or something."

"Alice!" Marlene exclaimed, "We might not like her boyfriend, but we're not going to scheme to get rid of him!"

"Well, if it helps, I don't like him either," Alice sighed, "I don't see why anyone would cheat on Lily, but I am a little relieved. Not that he cheated on her, but that he's going to be gone."

"The guy is an idiot for cheating on Lily." James shook his head, "He doesn't understand what he has to lose."

Alice smiled at James, knowing that he would never do anything to hurt Lily if she could just give him the chance.

* * *

**6th Year: Rounds**

"So, do you want to start in the dungeons and work our way up like we usually do?" Remus asked.

"Hmm?" Lily snapped out of her reverie, "Um, no, I think we should start with the Charms Corridor and then head to the dungeons and work our way back up."

Remus nodded his assent, "You really don't want to run the chance of missing him, do you?"

"I'm not going to stay with a guy who's cheating on me." Lily replied, "If I really, really liked him I might think about giving him another chance, but otherwise no way."

"You know, James would never cheat on you."

Lily turned and looked at Remus, "You always say things like that on patrols. Trying to get me to like James. We're friendly, isn't that enough?"

Remus shrugged, "For now it is. It's better than constant fighting anyways."

"What about you and Em?" Lily asked, smirking as she changed the subject, "I know you like her."

Remus stopped and looked sideways at Lily, "You know what? I do like her."

"Then ask her out, she's been smitten with you for ages." Lily urged.

"It's … complicated." Remus sighed, beginning to walk down the hall again.

"Come on Remus, all you have to do is ask her out. Dating isn't that complicated. And neither of you is going to run off in the other direction and break up, making things awkward."

"Those aren't the 'complicated' I was talking about," Remus sighed again.

"Come on Remus, we're friends. You trust me. I know you do because you lent me a book. Tell me why it would be complicated."

"Lily, I don't know how to tell you this." Remus took a deep breath, "I'm a werewolf."

"Yeah, I know." Lily replied offhandedly, "I've known for ages. We all have, or we suspected as much anyway. Em thinks its amazing that you can manage to stay caught up with everything and still go through what you do every month. It doesn't matter to any of us because you're still 'Remus'."

"That's what James, Peter, and Sirius said. How can it not matter?" Remus asked. "I don't see how it wouldn't matter."

"Remus, if I had cancer and lost my hair because of chemo would it matter to you?"

"What's chemo? I don't think wizards get cancer."

Lily sighed, trying to think of another approach, "You've read Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, right?"

"Yes."

"Okay, then if I were like that, turned into a being against my will that I couldn't control, would it matter to you?"

"As long as you didn't kill me, I wouldn't think it would."

"See, that's exactly how we feel about you. You have no control over your lycanthropy. And because you have no control over it, it doesn't bother us. In fact, we're proud of you and admire you for it."

Remus shook his head again, "It's just my biggest fear. To lose my friends the way I lost my family because of what I become once a month."

"You don't need to worry about that with us. Look at what the other girls and I become once a month. You still like us."

Remus laughed, "Thanks Lily, but I don't think it's quite the same thing."

"My point is that it doesn't matter to Em," Lily assured him. "Now, which door should we open first?"

Remus pointed, "I would suggest the one with the noises coming from behind it."

"I don't hear anything."

Remus pointed to his ears, "You forget, I've got extra sensitive ears."

"Ah, lead the way." Lily gestured, allowing Remus to pass in front of her and pull open a door. Lily stuck her lighted wand in the room and peered around. She spotted two oblivious figures, one sitting on a desk and one standing in front of said desk.

"What's going on in here?" Remus asked, holding his own wand into the room.

"Lily?"

"Adam." Lily replied, nodding curtly at the standing figure that had just turned and revealed his face to the light.

"We were just…"

"Oh, you don't have to explain yourself to me. I just expect you to be back in your Common Rooms within the next minute. You will both lose twenty points for being out at night and I shall suggest a detention as well due to the nature of the outing. Now I suggest you gather the remainder of your uniform and go."

The couple hurried out of the room, Adam giving Lily an anxious look as he walked by. Then he stopped and kissed her on the mouth. When he straightened back up, Lily slapped him.

"I should think I wouldn't have needed to say that we're over. I never want to talk to you again. And I think I shall make it a suggestion of a week of detentions for you just for trying to wheedle your way out of being in trouble."

"Lily Marie," Adam pleaded, "I didn't mean anything. She gave me a love potion. It wasn't my fault."

"Does she give you a love potion every week?" Lily asked coldly, "And does it always wear off just when it's convenient for you?"

Adam opened his mouth to reply but Remus cut him off, "I'd suggest you leave now or you can bet you'll have to deal with me and the rest of Lily's friends."

With a glare, Adam turned and strode angrily down the hallway. Lily watched him go and then slid to the floor.

"How in the world did you manage to stay so calm?" Remus asked, amazed, as he sat down beside her.

"I knew it was coming and I didn't really care about him yet," Lily replied.

"Then how is it that you get so worked up around James?" Remus questioned, "You know something's always coming with him and you don't really care about him."

Lily looked at Remus, "You don't really believe that, do you?"

"I believe that you try and make other people think you don't care about him. But I think you really do."

"How is it that you read people so well?"

"I pay attention. And I think you should stop making people think you hate James, because he believes it now too half the time and it's killing him."

"Are you saying that as my friend or his friend?"

"Both. It's killing both of you."

Lily was silent for a second and then she stood up, "Let's go patrol the rest of the castle, shall we?"

Remus stood up and the two started through the empty castle, each thinking their own private thoughts.

* * *

**_AN/ Okay guys, the final list will be included in the next chapter or so and then it's just them working to reaching their relationship, but Lily and James are going to becoming friends gradually over the next while. Yep, so there you go, sorry it's been so long. Hope all you Americans out there enjoy the Super Bowl! I know I'm watching for the commercials! Haha, love you all, don't forget to review. And thanks for keeping me writing, because I probably wouldn't bother if it weren't for you guys!_**

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	22. Chapter 22: Grab Me a Muffin

**_AN/ Hey everyone!!! How's life been treating you? To those of you who read Katie Codename Phoenix... sorry it's taking so long to update! I'm working on it!_**

**_Would you guys do me a favor and go read my oneshots?_ All the Time in the World _and_ Under the Moonlit Sky_... It'd really mean a lot to me! _**

**_Thanks so much for reading and reviewing, you guys are the only reason I do this! ENJOY_ **

* * *

6th Year: Prefect Meeting

"Did they just say they want to have a Halloween masquerade ball?" Lily asked Remus quietly.

Remus glanced up from his doodling, "Yep."

"Lovely. Want to guess who's going to get roped into doing decorations?"

"Lily," The Head Girl, Jennifer Churchlie asked, "Would you mind being in charge of the decorations?"

Lily smiled sweetly, "Of course, Jen."

The Head Girl scowled at the nickname and continued the meeting. Remus grinned at Lily.

"Nice use of the nickname."

"Thanks, I do try. I thought subtle rebellion was the best way to go."

"Yeah, well at least you're in charge of something that can be fun. You know what I'm going to get stuck with."

"Remus," Jennifer asked, "Would you take care of the food?"

"I'd be delighted, Jennie," Remus replied, causing the Head Girl to scowl even more.

"Oooh," Lily teased, "That was daring. I think that look could have killed you."

"Hmm," Remus examined the front of his robes, "Do you see a hole in them? That glare was like daggers."

Lily covered her mouth with her hand to stop the laughter, everything seemed funnier in a Prefect's meeting.

"Lily, does something amuse you?" Jennifer asked, turning her glare back on Lily.

"Not at all, Jennie," Lily assured her, "I was just so excited. Remus came up with the most excellent idea for a dessert."

"What's that?" Jennifer asked, her eyes narrowing.

"It's called dirt." Lily replied, thinking quickly, "Basically it's chocolate pudding with Oreo cookies and gummy worms on top."

"Sounds perfect." Jennifer said swiftly, sounding slightly disappointed that she hadn't been able to reprimand Lily.

The Prefect meeting dragged on and Remus resumed his doodling. Lily turned and stared out the window at the lighted Quidditch pitch where her fellow Gryffindors were practicing. She watched the tiny dots flying around until Remus nudged her.

"Meeting's over. We can go now."

Lily blinked and looked at him, "Already? Wow, time flies when you're having fun."

Remus laughed, "That's the spirit, Lily."

"So, you going to ask Em to the masquerade?" Lily asked, grabbing her bag and following Remus out of the classroom.

"I don't know," Remus sighed, "You're never going to drop this, are you?"

"Not until you two are happy together," Lily countered, smirking.

"I'll ask when I get back in two days," Remus assured, "I'm a little busy until then."

"Ah, that time already?"

"What time?" Severus Snape asked, coming up from behind.

"It's rude to eavesdrop on people's conversations," Lily replied.

Snape took a long searching look at Remus, "I know you're hiding something, Lupin, and I intend to find out what it is."

"What's going on here?" Sirius asked as he, James, Dorcas and Marlene rounded the corner. They normally swung by at the end of Quidditch on Thursdays to walk with Lily and Remus back to the Common Room.

"I was just telling Lupin here that I know he's hiding something, and I intend to be the one that reveals it to the school," Snape replied bravely, and rather foolishly Lily thought.

James and Sirius were instantly on the alert. James looked to Remus as if asking if they needed to take control of the situation. Remus shook his head slightly and James forced himself to relax.

"Good luck with that, Snivellus," James laughed shortly. "All Moony has to hide are Marauders' secrets and you don't want to know those."

"Why not?" Snape sneered.

"Do you remember Brighton Keese?" Sirius had picked up on a silent cue from James and kept his voice deadly calm.

"The second year Ravenclaw who sold you out to the teachers about that one prank and then was involved in an accident and had to leave the school?" Snape scowled. "Yeah, what about him?"

"That wasn't an accident," Sirius grinned maliciously.

Snape's eyes widened and his scowl deepened, "You're bluffing. You wouldn't dare to hurt another student!"

James shrugged, "If you say so, Snivellus. But you never know when a bookcase is going to," he paused for a second as if pondering his choice of words, "fall."

Snape's eyes narrowed and he disappeared into the shadows, "You're hiding something, Lupin, and I'm going to find out what."

Then he was gone, leaving the Gryffindors alone in the hallway.

"Potter, you better have been bluffing about Brighton Keese," Lily warned.

"Don't be an idiot, Lily," James assured, trying to be chipper and not quite succeeding, "What happened to Brighton Keese really was an accident. We may have been angry with him, but we weren't about to push him into the Whomping Willow and nearly kill the poor bloke."

"Nearly lost an eye," Sirius remembered. "That's the maddest I've ever seen Dumbledore. Outlawed everyone's favorite game if you remember."

The rest of the Gryffindors nodded and Lily cringed. She had been there when Brighton Keese had joined in the game of Willow Whomp that the girls had been playing. While the girls had ventured just close enough to feel the wind of the tree's branches whipping by, Brighton had crawled closer and closer to the trunk of the tree. Finally it had just wholloped him with its entire trunk, leaving the boy bleeding and within range. Someone had dashed off and gotten the nurse and the teachers. Brighton Keese was transferred to St. Mungos and never returned to Hogwarts.

"Come on, Lily. You know we'd never intentionally hurt someone," James nudged the silent girl softly.

"What about Severus Snape?" Lily asked quietly. "You've hurt him before."

"Prongs said we'd never intentionally hurt **_someone_**," Sirius replied, smirking.

James shot a glare in his direction, "Sniv…Snape has always done something to start the fights. We don't just waltz up to him and hex him."

"What about after OWLs?" Lily whispered, something about the conversation had seriously shaken her.

James cringed, "I made a mistake."

"Lily," Marlene peered at her friend and took her by the arm. "What's wrong? Are you feeling all right?"

Lily shook her head as if to clear it, "I just— why can't he leave Remus alone? It's really none of his business."

"Don't worry about it, Lily," Remus soothed, smiling reassuringly at his friend. "There's no real harm in Snape digging around. He won't find anything."

"I did," Lily replied, going completely white. "And if I could figure it out, I'm sure he can. He's not stupid."

Understanding clicked in James' head and he took Lily's hand, squeezed it briefly, and let go, "Nothing is going to happen to Remus. If Snape does find out, then I'm sure Dumbledore will keep him from doing any real harm."

Sirius' face went dark as he realized why Lily was so shaken, "Don't worry, Lily-rose. Snivellus won't find anything."

Lily nodded, reassured and the group continued its trek to Gryfindor tower. Sirius adding under his breath so that only the walls of the castle could hear him, "I won't let him."

* * *

**6TH Year: Night of the Full Moon **

"Are you ready to go, Padfoot?" James asked as his best friend entered the dorm room, grinning to himself and whistling a tune.

"Oh, I think we should give it another couple of minutes," Sirius replied lightly.

"But Moony will be changing soon," Peter squeaked. "We've never been late."

"We won't be late," Sirius replied, smirking contentedly to himself.

Something in Sirius' voice alerted James that something was not entirely right. He turned to survey his best friend carefully, "What's going on, Pad?"

"Oh, I'm just looking forward to tonight's escapades is all," Sirius replied, starting to whistle the tune again.

"Why are you whistling the Holyhead Harpettes?" Peter asked grimacing. "You hate them."

"What can I say? They're sorta growing on me, Pete." Sirius grinned.

James' eyes narrowed as he recognized the song. It was He Got What He Deserved; the song talked about a wizard who had cheated on his girlfriend and then been hit by the Night Bus, but James suspected that Sirius had other implications when his whistled it.

"Sirius," James demanded, "What did you do?"

Sirius stopped whistling, "Nothing that Snivellus didn't deserve. He's always poking his huge greasy nose in places it doesn't belong."

"Where is he?"

"Remus?" Sirius asked, pretending not to know what James was talking about, all traces of happiness gone, "I'd suspect he's in his little hidey hole seeing as how his furry little problem is at its worst tonight."

"You know what I mean," James growled, "Where is Snape?"

"How should I know?" Sirius snapped back a little too quickly. "I'm not his keeper."

"What did you tell him?!" James shouted, any restraint he had possessed leaving him and his anger washing over him fully.

"I didn't tell him anything!" Sirius bellowed, "I don't purposely talk to Snivellus! I rather try to avoid it!"

It took all of James' restraint to keep from punching Sirius right then, "Sirius, now is not the time for you to play dumb. Tell me what you told him!"

Sirius' only reply was to glare right back at James. He smirked briefly as his gaze flickered out the window. James' eyes widened and he was at the window in two quick strides, just quickly enough to see Snape searching for a stick just outside the base of the Whomping Willow.

"You bloody idiot!" James roared as he dashed towards the door, "Do you ever think about what you're doing?"

Realization flickered across Sirius' face, "Prongs, I wasn't thinking."

"You've done enough damage," James shouted as he sprinted from the room.

"I'm sorry!" Sirius called, but Peter was the only one that heard his apology because James was sprinting out of the school as fast as possible.

The only thought that passed through James' head was _I have to get to Snape_. So it was hard to tell if when he ran into Lily Evans and sent them both tumbling to the floor if his apology was for her because he ran into her or if it was to Snape because he wasn't already there. But whoever he was apologizing to as he sprinted off again, he didn't even remember until much later that he had even run into Lily. And she just sat on the floor, staring after him in wonder.

In record time, James was dashing out of the Entrance Hall and into the Hogwarts grounds. The distance from the door to the Whomping Willow seemed to be ten times the normal distance as James sprinted towards the tree and James hadn't paused for a second, but he kept running, knowing that Snape's life as well as Remus' and Sirius' depended on him getting to that tree in time. James barely slowed as he raced into the tree and through the passage underneath. Snape must have taken a long time finding a suitable branch because the tree had yet to start its writhing again. Perhaps James had time to get there after all.

James poured on an extra burst of speed as he spied Snape just under the trapdoor to the Shrieking Shack, fumbling with the latch. Snape seemed unsure as there was a horrible growling of pain and anger coming through the trapdoor, but as he glanced back and spotted James he ignored his misgivings and pulled at the latch faster.

"You can't protect Lupin anymore, Potter!" Snape cried as the latch came undone in his hand. He smirked triumphantly as he pushed up on the trapdoor just as James tackled him.

The two fell to the floor of the passage. James jumped back up, ignoring the throbbing of his right arm and the pain shooting through his collar bone as he hastily latched the trapdoor shut again. The growling grew even more angry as whatever was contained within the Shrieking Shack realized that it had been denied its snack.

James seized Snape with his left hand, since his right arm didn't appear to be working, and pinned him against the passage wall, "What did you see?"

Snape had gone entirely pale but he managed to reply with deep loathing, "Surely not even Dumbledore would harbor a werewolf."

James cursed and let go of Snape, causing him to go crashing to the floor of the passage. Only to grab hold of him again and thrust him ahead of him down the passage, "We're going to Dumbledore."

"I should think so," Snape replied coldly, trying to force himself to be calm again, "I should like– no, enjoy telling the Headmaster how you got cold feet during a prank and nearly made me become a snack for a werewolf."

James didn't reply but chose instead to observe his injuries. When he had tackled Snape he had landed on his right side, apparently shattering his arm and part of his collarbone. He grimaced, now that the excitement was over and the adrenaline leaving his body the pain was beginning to flow through his veins. It was nearly unbearable and he feared he might pass out at any second. Steeling himself he continued down the passageway, forcing himself to think of other things, but it was impossible. The pain was simply too much.

After what seemed like an eternity, the two sixteen-year-olds emerged into the dimly lit night. James scowled up at the full moon as he did every time he saw it, cursing it for causing this to happen, for forcing his friend to become a monster once a month. Then he turned his gaze on Snape. Somehow, by the cruel intervention of fate, the other boy was unharmed other than a minor scrape down his chin and a shaken look in his black eyes.

"I would have thought better of you, Evans," Snape sneered suddenly, and James looked around to see Lily standing in the moonlight uncertainly.

"James!" Lily exclaimed, rushing over, "Oh Merlin, are you alright. He didn't…"

James shook his head as if to clear the image of the redhead that had appeared at just the right time yet again. "Lily?"

"He didn't bite anyone, did he?" Lily forced herself to ask.

"No," James took a deep breath. As glad as he was that Lily had come to help, he still didn't want her to see him like this.

"Oh, James. Your arm is broken and— eurgh," Lily gasped as she got a good look at his arm and collar bone, "Well, never mind. I'm sure the new nurse will have that healed in no time."

Lily draped James' other arm around her shoulders and slipped her arm around his middle. Suddenly, James didn't mind quite so much that Lily was seeing him in such ragged condition. They headed back up towards the school and slipped through the front doors.

"Severus Snape!" Lily shouted suddenly, causing James to jump slightly, "Where are you going?"

Snape had been hurrying towards the dungeons but he jumped at Lily's shout and turned back towards the two. Sheepishly he suggested, "Habit?"

"Well rethink your habit because we're going directly to Dumbledore," Lily snapped, taking control of the situation.

"Thanks, Lily," James murmured softly, still struggling to remain conscious.

Lily went a light shade of pink, "Don't thank me, James."

"How did you know where to find me?"

"When you ran into me you also dropped your map. The one you four conned me into helping you with. You hadn't wiped it so I saw you hurrying out of the school and Severus Snape heading into the Willow . I just figured out the rest from there. Sirius came running down the hall soon after you left and I told him he'd better go straight to Dumbledore to wait."

"How'd you get him to listen to you?" James asked, admiringly.

Lily went pink again, "I threatened him with something. I don't quite recall what."

James laughed softly and then cringed because the laughing set off another flood of pain. Instead, he took to counting the floor tiles.

"James, we're almost there," Lily announced after a while.

"Oh, goody," James murmured deliriously. "I'd love some chocolate."

Lily's eyes got rather large as she continued the rest of the way to the gargoyle that guarded Professor Dumbledore's office. Snape leaned up against the wall beside the statue and sneered at her.

"I hope you know the password, Mudblood." Snape spat, "Because I certainly don't."

Lily thought quickly, "Lemon drop." The statue didn't budge, "Chocolate Frogs? Erm, Blood flavored lollipops?"

The gargoyle sprang to the side revealing the spiral staircase.

"Oh, I was only joking with that one," Lily murmured in an effort to keep herself completely calm.

"Only joking," James echoed softly.

Lily got a better hold of James and dragged him onto the staircase. When they got to the top of the stairs, Snape was once again leaning up against the wall.

"What are you doing?" Lily demanded, her patience which had lasted considerably longer than normal finally giving out, "Open the bloody door and go in!"

Snape muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like 'dirty Mudblood' and did as she had ordered. He decided against waiting for a come in and instead opened the door right away, not wanting to invoke the wrath of Lily Evans.

"Mr. Snape," Dumbledore said, nodding as Snape entered the office. "Mr. Potter, Miss Evans."

"Erm, Professor, I think James needs to see the nurse right away," Lily said in greeting as she stepped into the office.

Sirius looked up from his chair in front of Dumbledore's desk and his eyes grew wide in horror, "Moony didn't…"

"No, Sirius," Lily replied with a slightly hard edge in her voice that let Sirius know instantly that she knew this was his fault. "Remus didn't attack anyone."

Sirius looked away guiltily and Dumbledore, who had been conversing with the nurse through the fire, turned to look at the assembled teens.

"Madame Pomfrey, our new nurse, is on her way right now. I think it best that you fill me in on what you can until she arrives. Please take a seat. Now, Mr. Potter, can you tell us your part of the story?"

"Sir," Lily said tentatively, "I think you'd better hear Severus' side of it first. James was a bit delirious as we came into the office.

As if to prove Lily's point James made a rather strange comment about monkeys and chocolate pudding. In response to this Dumbledore raised his eyebrows and gestured to Snape to sit and tell his story.

Snape was maybe halfway through his heavily embellished story (Lily was positive that Sirius hadn't called ninja warriors to threaten Snape) when Madame Pomfrey bustled into the room.

"Ah, Poppy," Dumbledore said, grinning widely. "I think you ought to take a look at Mr. Potter right away."

The nurse looked at James who was slumped in a chair mumbling to himself about pixies and instantly began to tut as she went about her work, mumbling the entire time about students roughhousing and how these sorts of things could be prevented.

Lily stopped listening to Snape's side of the story, betting her life that there wasn't an ounce of truth in the entire thing. Instead, she turned her attention to the nurse who had healed James' broken arm and was now working on his collar bone.

"Miss Evans," Dumbledore said, breaking into Lily's thoughts, "What can you tell me about what happened tonight?"

Lily turned to the Headmaster, "All I know is that his story is complete rubbish. I'm certain there were no flying monkeys or ninja warriors involved."

Dumbledore's blue eyes twinkled merrily, "Thank you, Miss Evans. I'm sure Mr. Snape got a tad bit carried away, but will you tell me what happened to you?"

And so, Lily reiterated her part of the story, starting with why she had been in the hallway and leaving out the bit about the map. Instead, she claimed that Sirius had told her something about the Whomping Willow and she had figured out the rest. She was certain that Dumbledore had noted that she had been considerably less detailed when she was talking about her getting to the Willow, but he didn't say anything, only gazed at her over the tops of his fingers.

"Thank you, Miss Evans," He said when she was done. "As neither Mr. Snape nor Mr. Black have mentioned your involvement in this, you are free to go."

Lily opened her mouth to protest, wishing to hear what had really happened but then she decided against it and stood up. Her gaze rested on James, "Is he going to be all right?"

"Mr. Potter will be just fine, Miss Evans." Dumbledore assured, "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, sir," Lily replied softly, her emerald eyes locking onto James' hazel ones and remaining there until she had shut the office door behind her. Then she made her way shakily back towards Gryffindor Tower, sure that she wouldn't get a wink of sleep after all the excitement but passing out on her bed immediately upon reaching it anyways.

* * *

**6TH Year: Day After the Full Moon**

"Lily, wake up!" Alice exclaimed, shaking her best friend in an effort to rouse her.

"Meh amahey!" Lily groaned, waving her hand wildly in the air in an effort to hit her assailant.

"But classes start in forty-five minutes!" Alice protested, "And I'm hungry."

Lily forced herself to open her eyes and then immediately shut them again. Sighing she rolled out of her four poster and landed on the floor with a huge thump. Then she crawled towards the bathroom, trying to remember why she was so tired. It wasn't until she had finished getting ready that she remembered the events of the night before.

Grabbing her bag, she called to Alice as she hurried out of the room, "Let's go!"

"Why are you suddenly in such a hurry?" Alice asked as she sprinted to catch up to her friend, "And why did you come in so late last night and then not answer our questions?"

"I fell asleep," Lily replied, "And the reason I was so late was because I was talking to Professor Dumbledore."

"What?" Alice sounded shocked, "Why? What happened?"

"It was nothing and, at the same time, everything. I just want to be sure that Sirius, Remus, and James didn't get expelled."

Lily put on an extra burst of speed and Alice struggled to keep up, "Expelled! Why would they be expelled?"

"I'll explain later," Lily assured her friend, "Grab me a muffin or something, will you?"

"Grab you a muffin?!" Alice called after her friend, "Where are you going?"

Lily waved her hand and continued down the hallway, "I'll see you in Potions!"

Alice grumbled about not being told anything and made her way towards the Great Hall, wondering what had happened the night before that had Lily so worried and out past curfew.

As for Lily, she was soon opening the door to the Hospital Wing and slipping inside. She was instantly met with loud angry voices that she immediately recognized as James, Sirius, and Remus.

"What the hell is your bloody problem?" James was roaring, "You nearly got Snape killed and, worse than that, Lily would have been the next to be attacked! I can't take on a werewolf by myself!"

"I wasn't thinking and I'm sorry I put your precious Lily-rose in danger, but it was a joke, Prongs. A bloody joke! It wasn't supposed to do any harm at all!" Sirius roared back.

"You nearly got yourself expelled and turned Remus into a murderer! All for a bloody prank. Last night you almost ruined five lives, four of which we all care about more than anything else in the world!"

"It's not my fault that Snivellus listened to me! It's not like I forced him to go poking his huge greasy nose into other people's business!"

"No, but you knew that he would!" James bellowed.

"Guys!" Remus' voice broke in, softer than either of the other voices. "I don't want to have this fight here and now. I'm tired and I need some sleep. Prongs should probably get some too and classes are about to start. We'll discuss this after your detention tonight."

"Fine," Sirius replied, "I'm off to Potions then. Oh and you are going to have to find yourself another Beater; I've been suspended as well."

"Fan-bloody-tastic!" James exclaimed, "That's just the cherry on top!"

Sirius came stalking out of the curtained area that James and Remus occupied. He spotted Lily and froze, "How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough to know exactly how much slack Dumbledore cut you," Lily replied, raising an eyebrow. Then she sighed and gave him a minuscule smile, "I'm glad you're still here, as annoying as you sometimes are."

Sirius nodded and stepped out of the Hospital Wing, "Prongs'll be happy to see you."

Lily turned and walked up to the curtains where she heard soft voices talking. She knocked on the pole and stepped through the curtain.

"Sirius, I thought I said…" Remus started, then he saw that it was Lily and not Sirius who had come through the curtain. "Oh, hi Lily."

"Hi Remus, James," Lily smiled with concern at the werewolf and his friend. "How are you two doing?"

"No worse than usual. Although I do have a nasty bruise from throwing my shoulder against the trapdoor all night," Remus replied honestly returning Lily's smile weakly.

"That's good to hear. You look tired so I'll let you rest," Lily looked towards James who got up from the chair beside Remus' bed.

"I'll talk to you later mate," James assured his friend before nodding for Lily to follow him through the curtains.

James sat down on his own bed and Lily sat down in the chair beside him. They looked at each other for a moment.

"Thanks for helping last night," James said quietly so as to not disturb Remus.

"Forget about it, Potter," Lily replied gruffly, as if it was nothing.

James grinned, "I can't forget about it, Lils. You really may have saved Padfoot from expulsion last night."

"What about your sorry butt, James?"

"Eh, that too. But I'm thanking you more because you saved Sirius."

Lily feigned shock, "James Potter valuing someone else over himself? I never thought I'd see the day!"

James shrugged and closed his eyes.

"You're tired," Lily said quickly. "I should let you rest."

"No, don't go." James' eyes snapped open, "I'm just frustrated with Sirius."

"Don't be too hard on him. He really is sorry. He didn't think."

"And that's the problem. He didn't think and it nearly destroyed five lives."

"But everything turned out alright," Lily argued, "And I know he'll never do it again."

James laughed lightly, "I would have thought that you, of all people Miss Evans, would say I had to be really hard on Sirius."

"Just playing Devil's advocate." Lily shrugged, "And honestly, Sirius has started to grow on me recently. You all have I suppose, but I was just relieved to see that he hadn't been expelled."

"He has detention every night for four months and was suspended from Quidditch for the rest of the year instead." James smiled unhappily, "But at least he wasn't expelled."

"You're going to have to find yourself another Beater then, huh?"

"Yeah, got any ideas?"

"There's a rather large kid in fifth year, he might be decent." Lily replied, shrugging, "I honestly have no idea."

James glanced at his watch, "You do realize that you're missing Slughorn's class. If you hurry you could still get there before class is halfway over. He probably wouldn't even say anything to you."

Lily shrugged, "It doesn't matter. If he asks I'll just tell him I was in the Hospital Wing and wasn't feeling well."

"Lily Evans, lying to a teacher!" James exclaimed dramatically. "Oh the horror!"

"I'm not lying!" Lily exclaimed defensively, "I am in the Hospital Wing and I'm not feeling very well."

James looked concerned, "Are you sick?"

"No, I just hardly slept last night."

"Well, take a nap in here then, so that you don't have to lie to Slughorn."

"I'm not going to just hop into some random bed!" Lily protested, "I'll be fine."

"Don't hop into some random bed, just take a quick nap in mine."

"James Orion Potter!" Lily's eyes went wide, "I am not hopping into your bed! I thought you had changed!"

"Oh Merlin, Lily," James amended quickly, "That is not what I meant. I—"

Lily laughed and climbed up to sit beside him on the bed, "Relax James, I know what you mean."

Lily was soon asleep, her head falling to rest on James' shoulder. James grinned, unable to believe his luck and soon followed her to dreamland, his head slipping to rest on top of hers. It seemed seconds later that he was awoken by a coughing noise.

"What?" James asked groggily, looking around to find that the entire sixth year of Gryffindor, minus Frank and Sirius, were gathered around him. Remus had pulled back the curtain that separated their beds.

Marlene smirked and nodded at Lily, who was still sleeping with her head resting on James' shoulder, "That one's missed all her morning classes so we thought we'd come find her. And voila, there she is, looking quite comfortable sleeping on your shoulder."

James grinned widely, "Huh, she does look comfortable, doesn't she?"

"What happened last night?" Alice asked. "Lily wouldn't say. She just hurried off here."

James looked to Remus and everyone else turned to look his way too. James nodded at him encouragingly.

Taking a deep breath, Remus explained that he was a werewolf and told what Sirius had done. Then he looked to James to finish the rest of the story. James added his narration to everything, filling his fellow Gryffindors in about the previous night's events.

"So, that's basically what happened," James finished, grinning to see that Emmeline was sitting on Remus' bed and had her hand on his comfortingly.

"How is it that Lily catches all the excitement and I always miss it?" Dorcas grumbled.

"Would someone wake her up?" Alice asked, "She hasn't eaten all day."

"Why don't you do it Alice?" Marlene suggested.

"Nuh uh, no way!" Alice exclaimed, "I already woke her up once today."

"Don't look at me," Dorcas protested, "It was my turn yesterday!"

"I have to tomorrow," Em called, "Don't be cruel."

"Well, I'm not waking her up," Marlene added, "She'll just have to sleep."

"She hasn't eaten all day?" James asked and Alice shook her head. "Then I'll wake her up."

"It's been nice knowing you, James," Marlene clapped him on the shoulder good naturedly.

"Is she really that bad to wake up?" Peter asked, "What does she do?"

"Let's just say, James ought to find a stick to poke her awake with," Alice explained.

Peter and James both cringed.

Remus laughed, "I'm sure you could find plenty of sticks Prongs."

"Shut up, Moony," James glared at his friend, "I'm not poking her with a stick."

"Your funeral," Dorcas laughed.

James tentatively reached over and shook Lily's shoulder lightly, "Lily?"

"Hmm?" Lily asked sleepily.

"Lily, you have to wake up. You haven't eaten all day."

"No wonder I'm starving," Lily opened her eyes and then shut them against the light, burying her face in James' shoulder, "On second thought, it's too bright."

"That's not fair!" Dorcas complained, "I nearly get my eye taken out and all James gets is an 'it's too bright'."

Lily opened her eyes and turned to glare at Dorcas, "I did not almost take out your eye!"

"Yes, you did."

"Well, if I did, you were asking for it. You know not to jump on my bed to wake me up!"

"I know that now," Dorcas grumbled, "But that's because you nearly took my eye out."

Lily stuck her tongue out at her friend and stood up, "So, who wants to head to the kitchens?"

"I'm in," James announced, swinging his legs off the side of the bed.

"No, you're not." Lily replied, "You can't leave the Hospital Wing."

"Why not?" James asked, "I'm perfectly fine. Only a little bit tired."

"Madame Pomfrey will have your head," Remus laughed.

"Egh, she'd keep us both in here for weeks if she could find a reason," James made a face. "How about you, Moony? You up to it?"

"I think I am," Remus replied, climbing out of his own bed.

"I am not walking around school with either of you until you change out of those pajamas," Marlene announced before stepping out of the curtained area. The others followed her quickly, Lily leaving with a grin.

A few minutes later the group was off to the kitchens, all of them having no class right after lunch. James fell into step beside Lily and Alice fell back to walk with Marlene and Dorcas.

"You were awake the entire time," It wasn't a question, but an observation.

"You caught me," Lily replied, "I just wanted to see if you'd all talk about me."

"And then you just wanted to annoy Dorcas."

"There's that too," Lily shrugged, "So, I think that we should all place bets as to when Remus will finally ask Em out."

"I'd say by the end of the week."

"Ten sickles its before the end of the day."

"Deal!" James exclaimed and they shook hands, "Oh, you are so losing ten sickles, Miss Evans."

"I beg to differ, Mr. Potter. It will be you who will owe me ten sickles."

"Of course I'll go to the Halloween Ball with you, Remus!" Emmeline exclaimed from somewhere behind Lily and James.

Lily stuck out her hand, "I think that will be ten sickles, Mr. Potter."

"No way, he asked her to the ball; not out."

"It's a date, isn't it?"

"Well, sort of."

"If you asked me and I said yes, would you consider it a date?"

"Yeah, but that's beside the point."

"Ten sickles, Mr. Potter. It's a date."

"No way! You must have had inside information." James crossed his arms across his chest and shook his head.

"Fork over the ten sickles, James. We shook on it!"

Sighing James pulled out some money from his pocket, "If I give you fifteen sickles will you go with me to the Halloween thing? As friends?"

"Give me the ten and I'll consider it. As friends."

James handed her the money and put the rest of it back in his pocket, "So, what's this Halloween thing going to be like?"

Lily laughed, "You think I actually pay attention in Prefect meetings?"

"You don't?" James asked.

"Nobody pays attention in those meetings."

"You pay attention in Professor Binns' class; nobody else does that." James pointed out.

"I don't pay attention in that class," Lily replied.

"But you have pages and pages of notes."

"James, I charmed my quill to take them automatically. I sleep just like everyone else."

"Oh. So you have no idea what this Halloween thing is going to be like?"

"Give me some credit. I do absorb some information while I stare at the Quidditch Pitch out the window."

"Watching me practice, Evans?"

"It's either that or watch Patty Leenk eat her own boogers," Lily retorted. "I choose the lesser of two evils."

James shuddered, "That's disgusting."

"But I do know that it's a Masquerade Ball and Remus is in charge of food and I got stuck with decorations."

"So, the food will be great, the decorations will be spectacular and the music will probably suck. Sounds exactly like one of my parent's balls they throw."

"Your parents throw balls?"

"Don't yours?"

Lily laughed, "My parents rarely even throw barbeques."

"Ugh, I wish my parents had barbeques. You have to get all dressed up and pretend to enjoy talking to stuck up people and pretend to like dancing with gorgeous girls that can't string a coherent sentence together. The only positive thing is that you get to eat the best food in the world while you pretend to like everything else."

"That doesn't sound so bad."

"Oh, but it is," James assured, "I'll invite you to one and you can see for yourself if you don't believe me."

They had reached the entrance to the kitchens and Lily reached out and tickled the pear. Then she turned the handle and stepped into the vast Hogwarts kitchens. The others filed in behind her and they were all soon overrun by house elves. After asking for sandwiches for lunch, the group sat at a table in the back of the kitchen.

"So, has Prongs convinced you to go with him to the Halloween Masqurade Ball?" Peter asked.

James swiftly kicked his friend under the table.

"Ow!" Peter squeaked, "What was that for?"

"Ix-nay on the all-bay, Wormtail." James hissed.

"You didn't have to kick me!" Peter protested.

Lily grinned, realizing that although James had asked her in an offhand way, he really had put some thought into this and tried not to screw it up. "He asked me, if that's what you mean."

James looked completely stressed as Marlene smirked at him.

"What did you say?" Alice asked her friend.

Lily shrugged, "I said I'd consider going as friends."

"Friends?" Remus asked, "When did this happen?"

"Next thing you know they'll be dating!" Marlene exclaimed.

James shot them a look that clearly said, 'I like where I am; don't push it'.

Lily turned slightly pink and didn't reply. Instead, she choose to examine the table in front of her. The other Gryffindors, minus James, burst out laughing. James glared at all of them, causing them to laugh even harder.

"I didn't ask them to say anything," James whispered to Lily.

"I know," Lily replied. "I just… I was going to say yes, but if they won't lay off…"

"I'll make them lay off then," James assured hurriedly, afraid his chance was slipping away.

Lily shook her head, "Don't even worry about it. They'll only get worse. They should lay off eventually."

"So, is that a yes? You will go to the ball with me?"

"As friends."

"As friends?"

"Yes, I'll go with you."

James grinned widely and did a mental victory dance. Lily raised an eyebrow and the Gryffindors all started laughing again. But James couldn't even be bothered that his mental victory dance wasn't just mental. Nope, he was going to a Halloween Masquerade Ball with Lily Evans… as friends, but still. It was a Ball and she was Lily Evans.

* * *

**_A/N: so, there you go, don't worry... I'll update again soon! I actually probably have somewhere between two and three chapters already written, so it shouldn't be too long! As always, let me know if you have any suggestions for the story!_**

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	23. Chapter 23: Good Combs in the Dark Ages

**_Bonjour! Ha, yeah, I'm in French I at the moment so that's about all I can say in french... well that and my school supplies... cause you know that's going to be useful. If I went to France it'd be something like "Bonjour. Je m'appelle MotherCrumpet. J'ai (insert age) ans. J'ai un cahier rouge. Et toi?" (Hi, my name is MotherCrumpet. I am ? years old. I have a red notebook. And you?)_**

**_Okay so after that little French anecdote... just to warn you this chapter is more 'mature' than normal... so for those of you who don't want to read about the terrible things that a guy can do to a girl, wait until the next chapter and join back in!_**

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6TH Year: Halloween

"Prongs sure is excited," Sirius observed casually. He and the rest of the Marauders were on good terms again, although things were still a little rough.

Remus looked up from his essay that he was proofreading and surveyed his friend, "Prongs, you do realize you have twelve hours, don't you?"

"I know, its just… I never thought I'd get her to come around, you know?" James replied, trying to flatten his hair in the mirror because he knew how much Lily hated it being so messy.

"Relax Prongs, you're only going as friends anyway," Sirius laughed at his friend. "I've never seen you this worried about a date."

"Well, I've never gotten to go with Lily Evans before," James shot back.

"Okay, okay," Sirius laughed, "Take a breath. You'll be fine."

James turned away from the mirror, "Bloody Hell! I forgot what I was going to wear!"

"It's on your bed," Remus sighed, glancing up again from his essay with concern.

James ripped open the hangings on his bed and found that his costume did, in fact, lie on his bed. With a sigh, James sank onto the bed, only to jump up again.

"I forgot Lily's corsage!" James cried, wide eyed.

"You're not supposed to get her one," Sirius looked at his best friend and then turned to Remus, "Do you think you can sedate him or something?"

"Lily could," Remus replied, "But I don't think that I could manage."

"Then off to get Lily it is," Sirius got up off his own bed and started for the door only to be tackled to the ground by James. "Ow, Prongs get off me!"

"Don't get Lily!" James pleaded, "I'll calm down."

"Bloody hell, Prongs. Just get off me!"

James let go of his best friend, "Don't get Lily. I don't want her to think I'm stressing about this."

"Trying to save some face?" Peter asked.

"Yes."

"Why bother, she already knows you hopelessly chase after her."

James shot his friend a glare, "I do not."

Sirius laughed, "Yeah, you do mate."

"I do not! Moony, tell them I don't."

"Oh, it's only mostly hopeless. You actually snagged a date with her this time." Remus replied diplomatically.

"See!" James exclaimed, "Moony's the smart one, which means I really haven't been hopelessly chasing her!"

"Sure mate," Sirius laughed, "Of course."

Sirius started for the door again causing James to shoot a questioning glance at him.

"Where are you going?" James asked suspiciously.

"Gotta go make sure Marlene hasn't changed her mind or anything," Sirius replied offhandedly.

"You're nervous!" James accused, pointing at him, "You're nervous and you still sit there and threaten to go get my date to sedate me!"

"Yeah, pretty much," Sirius shrugged, walking out the door.

"Wait, Padfoot!" James jumped up off the floor and followed his friend out the door and down the stairs to the Common Room.

Marlene, Dorcas, Emmeline, Alice, and Frank were all sitting in a corner of the Common Room. Sirius had sat down next to Marlene and James followed him, sitting on an empty seat next to Alice on the couch.

"Where's Lily?" James asked, looking around the Common Room.

"Upstairs, freaking out," Alice laughed.

"Alice!" Emmeline exclaimed, "Don't tell him that!"

James grinned, "She's nervous?"

Dorcas snorted, "That's just about the understatement of the year."

"Ha Prongs, you're not alone," Sirius ribbed. "She's as nervous as you."

"I'm not nervous!" James protested.

"Face it, you're a wreck," Frank said, "You woke us all up at two o'clock in the morning just because you thought you had forgotten to buy a costume."

James went a funny shade of pink and avoided looking at anyone. The Gryffindors laughed.

"Well, it's clear I'm not wanted here," James grumbled, standing up and heading out of the Common Room.

"He's just on edge today," Sirius explained, "I guess Lily-rose is too then."

"Oh, she's worse than him. She's been staring at that ridiculous list all day," Alice grumbled, "I don't think that she slept last night at all."

"List?" Sirius asked, "What list is that?"

Marlene laughed, "She's had that stupid thing since first year; the first day of first year to be exact. 'Lily Evans's Impossibly Long List Of Changes James Potter Would Have To Go Through In Order For Lily Evans To Date Him.' We call it Lily's List. It's about thirty-three demands long."

"She has a list?" Sirius asked, breaking into a wide grin. "Obviously she's been quite smitten with our Prongsie for years now."

"Exactly!" Marlene exclaimed, "And she dated that idiot, Becker, without a second thought! But then there's James, who's perfect for her, just sitting there, and she's got this huge list all written up for him."

"I want to see this list," Sirius announced.

"So do I," Alice grumbled, "She won't let me see it anymore."

"Well, half of the things have to be crossed off of it by now." Emmeline pointed out, "James isn't the immature kid he was when he was eleven."

"Go get the list, Marlene." Sirius urged.

"Yeah Marlene. You can take Lily; she's tiny and you play Quidditch." Dorcas laughed.

"Ugh, no way!" Marlene shook her head, "That girl can hit."

Sirius shrugged, "I wasn't going to go into the girl's dormitories, but I think I'll have to now."

"Oh, no you don't!" Marlene pushed Sirius back down into his seat, "You're just trying to see my costume. Well you can just wait until tonight. I'll go get that list."

Sirius grinned as she started up the stairs to the girl's dormitories. She had found out exactly what he had been trying to do. That Marlene really did want to go to the Masquerade Ball with him tonight, but this list; he decided he wanted to stick around and see this list.

"Here it is," Marlene tossed it to him as she sat down a few minutes later, "Lily wasn't even up there."

"Must be putting up the decorations then," Alice shrugged. "Come on, Sirius. Read the list."

Sirius glanced at the list in his hands and started to read:

* * *

**Lily Evans's Impossibly Long List Of Changes James Potter Would Have To Go Through In Order For Lily Evans To Date Him**

**(More commonly referred to as 'Lily's list')**

1. X Lose the glasses, they make him look dumber than he already does

2. X Make a top grade in the class

3. X Talk about something other than Quidditch

4. X Actually grow taller than Lily

5. X Sustain a horrible Quidditch injury and not play in a game but go to the match and cheer the team on anyway

6. X Refer to Alice Prewett as something other than 'Gideon and Fabian's sister' or the ever popular 'Prewett'

7. X Stop messing up his already messy hair all the time so that it looks like he's just stepped off his broomstick

8. X Learn to walk around the school instead of strutting everywhere

9. X Get Remus Lupin out of trouble instead of into it

10. X Date a girl other than a bimbo

11. X Break up with girl mentioned in #10 for some _good_ reason other than 'she wasn't a good kisser'

12. X Stop knicking school owned objects like that annoying snitch, especially since he's a Chaser

13. X Stop flipping Severus Snape upside down and showing the school his knickers for no reason other than that Snape was born and Potter's mates were bored

14. X Allow Remus Lupin to confess to Lily that Remus is, in fact, a werewolf

**_15. Confess that he's an animagi_**

16. X Refer to Lily as 'Lily' instead of 'Evans'

17. X Allow Lily to feel comfortable referring to him as 'James' instead of 'Potter'

18. X Stop beating up Lily's 'boyfriends'

19. X Stop asking Lily out in front of her 'boyfriend' or while she has one & Stop asking Lily out while he has a 'girlfriend'

20. X Swear that he wasn't part of Sirius Black's bright idea to set Severus Snape on Remus Lupin while Remus was in his werewolf state

21. X Stop smirking at anything that walks and falls in the category of girl like she's a hunk of meat

_**22. Stop smirking period, at least most of the time, sometimes it's cute**_

_**23. Get Frank Longbottom to ask Alice Prewett out**_

_**24. Invite Lily Evans to one of his parent's fancy parties he always brags about**_

_**25. Meet Petunia and decide to put up with her**_

_**26. Meet Lily's parents and they decide they like him**_

_**27. Get Sirius to meet Lily's parents and they decide they like Sirius**_

_**28. Get Remus to meet Lily's parents and they decide they like Remus**_

_**29. Get Peter to, well no, but get Frank and Alice to meet Lily's parents and they decide they like the two of them (As a couple, they've already met Alice and have decided they like her very much)**_

_**30. Get his parents to meet Lily's parents and invite them all to a casual dinner**_

_**31. Take Lily for a midnight broom ride**_

_**32. Finally, ask Lily out using a speech that proves that he really has conformed to all of the changes listed above and proves he doesn't want her as a trophy but truly loves her**_

_**33. And, most importantly, stop being a FILTY, IRROGANT, IMPOSSIBLE, ANNOYING, FILTHY, ROTTEN, TOERAG and DEFLATE HIS GALATIC SIZED EGO**_

I, Lily Evans, claim the right to adapt any of the changes on **Lily Evans's Impossibly Long List Of Changes James Potter Would Have To Go Through In Order For Lily Evans To Date Him** at any time or to add to the list at any time with the approval of my best friend, Alice Prewett.

* * *

"Well, that's interesting," Sirius commented offhandedly. 

"It's a lot longer than it used to be," Marlene added.

Alice and Frank were both quite red after hearing list item number 23. They kept sneaking sideways glances at each other and turning even redder. And Alice couldn't quite decide if she wanted to strangle Lily or hug her.

* * *

**6TH Year: Decorating the Great Hall**

Lily Evans sat on the floor of the Great Hall, attempting to untangle the decorations in front of her. Boxes of knotted lights and dangling paper pumpkins lay in front of her. She was working hard, and making no progress whatsoever.

Sighing she dropped a knotted bunch of lights onto the floor and picked up another. She had tried magic, but the decorations were so knotted it only made things worse. Besides, you really needed one person to magically pull on each end for optimum results.

"Having trouble?" James asked, sinking down beside her.

"No, not at all," Lily replied sarcastically, "I mean to hang bunches of half-burned-out orange lights around the Great Hall. Classy, no?"

"I'm sure it'll be the height of class, Miss Evans," James laughed.

"What are you doing down here? Last I heard you were up in your dormitory freaking out about taking some girl to the Masquerade Ball tonight."

"Last I heard you were in your dormitory freaking out about some guy taking you to the Masquerade Ball tonight," James retorted.

"Oh, touché. But whoever told you that didn't have their facts straight." Lily tossed the set of lights she was attempting to untangle onto the small mound of unusable decorations and sighed. "There is no way to untangle these. They're all completely useless."

"I thought you were always in charge of decorations." James picked up a discarded wad of paper pumpkins and ghosts and examined it.

"Only putting them up, some other poor soul has to take them all down." Lily replied, pulling her wand out and levitating the useless decorations into one box. When she was done, she waved her wand and the box flew off to a storage room down the hallway.

"That leaves you with," James looked around at the minuscule amounts of ornaments, "almost nothing."

Lily surveyed the remaining items and grimaced, "You're right. I'm going to have to break into the Christmas decorations."

"No!" James exclaimed, causing Lily to give him a rather strange look.

"Why not?"

"Sirius and I are very finicky about Christmas." James explained, "None of the Christmas decorations can come out before the last weekend in November and they all must be on display by the end of the first week of December. Those are the rules."

Lily threw her hands up in the air, "Then what do you suggest we do for decorations?"

James looked around for a couple seconds and then grinned, "We'll make them."

"I am not making decorations for the Great Hall. It'll look like one of those parties you have in school as kids. No way."

"Are you a witch or what?" James waved his wand and a spare bit of parchment under the Ravenclaw table turned into a strand of lights.

Lily grinned and waved her own wand. Nothing happened.

"What did you do?" James asked, looking around the Great Hall and seeing nothing.

Lily pointed to the boxes flying back from the storage room, bringing several others with them. "Those are all full of broken decorations. We might as well put them to good use."

James nodded and peered into the boxes, "What do you want it to look like?"

Lily grinned and waved her wand, creating an illusion of the Great Hall with all the decorations in place. "It needs to be gorgeous."

"So that means the paper pumpkins are out?" James asked.

"The paper pumpkins are out."

"Oh thank Merlin! They're rather disturbing."

"James?"

"Yes?"

"Are you afraid of the paper pumpkins?"

James was eyeing one and waved his wand, turning it into a strand of lights. He grinned and then stepped into another one that was stuck to the ceiling. With a yelp he turned and blasted it with a jet of red light from the end of his wand.

"A little bit," he admitted sheepishly as Lily burst out laughing. "But nothing next to Padfoot."

Lily laughed even harder as she pictured the handsome and fearless Sirius Black, cowering in fear because of a paper pumpkin.

* * *

**6TH Year: Halloween Masquerade Ball**

The Gryffindor girls were all gathered in the bathroom putting the final touches on their hair and makeup. They were all already dressed in their various costumes.

Alice wore a blue dress and a white apron, her blonde hair was in curls down her back and she wore little black slippers and a matching black headband to hold her hair out of her face. Her date, a friend from Ravenclaw, was going to be dressed as the white rabbit to complete the Alice in Wonderland theme.

Emmeline and Remus were going as Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice. Em was wearing a gorgeous white ball gown with little white sleeves and a floor length skirt. Her hair was curly and pinned up in a loose bun with wisps of hair framing her face.

Dorcas was going to meet a seventh year Ravenclaw. She was dressed as a fan girl with a band t-shirt and jeans. He was going to have the full on rocker outfit complete with guitar.

Marlene and Sirius were dressed as pirates. Marlene's hair hung loosely down her back, tangled with a few braids. Her eyes were heavily lined and she had a red bandana tied around her head. Her white shirt had puffed long sleeves, which she layered under a red vest. She wore black breeches and boots and she had transfigured her wand into a sword hanging in a scabbard by her right side.

Lily peered into the mirror at herself, thinking that she didn't look nearly as good as her friends did. She and James were going as a medieval Knight and Lady. Her dress was the same emerald color as her eyes. It had a off the shoulder neckline that hugged the edge of her shoulders and sleeves that hugged her slim upper arms and flared starting at the elbows. The skirt barely skimmed the floor and her matching emerald ballet slippers poked out when she walked. Her hair was in soft curls down her back, with pieces from the front braided back around her head.

"You look gorgeous, Lily," Alice assured her friend as she looked over to see Lily anxiously looking in the mirror again.

"Oh Alice. Why did I agree to go with him?" Lily asked, "I hate him!"

Alice grabbed her best friend's hands and gave them a quick squeeze, "You don't hate him. He's changed and he's a good person."

Lily nodded, chewing nervously on her bottom lip. Alice sighed.

"Do you want to have a code in case anything goes wrong so that I can get you out of there?"

Lily nodded.

"Okay, if you need me then say that you think you ripped your dress. And then you should come find me, saying you want me to help you fix it."

"Alice," Marlene exclaimed, "Don't encourage her to leave!"

"I'm not," Alice retorted, "I'm just giving her an option so that she's more comfortable."

Marlene sighed and gave Lily's arm a quick squeeze, "You'll be fine and you look gorgeous."

"Not as good as you all do." Lily replied, smiling at her friends in their various costumes.

"No Lily, you look about ten times better," Dorcas laughed, "Ready to go?"

The girls all took a last glance in the mirror before declaring that they were ready to go. Then they headed down to the Common Room to meet the boys.

James stood next to Sirius nervously, looking up at the stairs every couple of seconds, then at his costume, and then at Sirius, Remus, and Peter. Sirius appeared calm, but he was really just as nervous as James was. Remus, for one, was not nervous. For some reason he was perfectly calm at the fact that he was getting to take Emmeline to the Masquerade Ball. As for Peter, well, his date was a Hufflepuff and he didn't have any reason to be nervous, so he wasn't.

James looked at Remus in his old style tux and Sirius in his pirate costume; Peter was dressed as a Muggle tourist, complete with tropical shirt and camera. Then James looked down at his own costume.

He wore a simple dark brown tunic and gloves over black pants. His boots were also brown and he had attempted to make his hair lie flat, but he had forgotten and run his hand through his hair nervously a couple of times so that it stood up. He also wore a green cape fastened with a leaf shaped pendant so that it hung over one shoulder.

James ran his hand through his hair again and glanced at the clock above the fireplace nervously. What if she decided she wouldn't come?

Sirius laid a hand on James' shoulder, "Relax, James. She's coming."

James nodded and lowered his hand. A group of girls came down the stairs and the group looked up eagerly, but it was just some fourth years. James looked down at his feet and shifted his weight, running his hand through his hair nervously again.

"You must be nervous," Lily commented, as she suddenly appeared beside him, "You've run your hand through your hair three times in the time it took me to come down the last couple stairs. Your poor hair will all fall out of your head."

"At least it'll lie flat," James replied, attempting to smooth his hair down, suddenly remembering that Lily hated it sticking up.

Lily took his hand away from his head, "Leave it. It's no use. Besides, I don't mind it messy."

"You like the windswept-look now?" Sirius teased.

Lily shrugged, "I'm sure they didn't have good combs in the Dark Ages."

The group started out of the Common Room, Sirius with his arm draped over Marlene's shoulders, Remus next to Em and Alice , Dorcas and Peter walking together and discussing how easy it would be to find their dates.

"Shall we?" James asked, offering Lily his arm.

"We shall." Lily replied, looping her own arm gently through his and starting out of the Common Room.

The Gryffindors made their entrance into the Great Hall and were as stunned as the rest of the student population at the decorations that adorned the Masquerade Ball. The house tables had been cleared out and replaced with a single long table on one side that was laden with food. Small tables were clustered near the buffet. The music floated from somewhere in the room, but it was impossible to pinpoint exactly where. Strings of light were the only source of light in the room and they covered all the walls with curtains of lights acting as dividers for the food area and the open dance floor. It was agreed that Lily and James had outdone themselves on the decorating.

"It doesn't look half bad," Lily commented as she and James surveyed the room.

"I have to agree with you on that one." James nodded, looking at the decorations and being relieved on finding no paper pumpkins. "You hungry?"

"Not really, but I know you are."

"Actually, I think I'm too nervous to be hungry," James replied.

"You're nervous?" Lily asked, "And you're not hungry?"

Lily put her left hand on James' forehead.

"Again with the fever thing?"

"Well, you aren't sounding like yourself," Lily protested.

"I'm fine. And I sound more like myself than I usually do around you."

Lily grinned and blushed slightly; finding that she was actually glad James was being so straightforward with her. Normally, she would be suspicious that he was making fun of her, but something in his tone made her think otherwise. She was learning to trust him, and didn't necessarily think it was a bad thing.

"So you want to dance then?" Lily asked, "Sirius and Marlene already are."

"Yeah, I'd like that." James took her hand and led her towards the dance floor.

Nobody was really ballroom dancing, so Lily just put her arms around James' neck and he placed his hands on her waist, the two moving slightly with the music.

"Look over there," Lily whispered, pointing discreetly behind James.

James turned so that he was facing the way Lily had been and looked to see where she was pointing. He saw Sirius dancing with Marlene, both oblivious to everything happening around them.

"Sirius and Marlene?" He asked quietly.

"Yep. They'll be together before the night ends." Lily announced.

"I don't know, Padfoot is afraid of commitment."

"So is Marlene, but it doesn't matter. It's been a long time coming and they're both willing to commit this time."

"But what if Padfoot doesn't know she's willing to commit?"

"He has to take that chance, and if he cares he will."

"What if he's taken that chance already and he's been shot down."

"Maybe he just needs to change his tactic."

"And if he changes that tactic?"

Lily grinned, "I don't think we're still talking about Sirius and Marlene."

James shrugged, "What do you think about Moony and Emmeline?"

"It's a different situation, Remus knows she's ready to commit, and he wants to, but he's afraid. He's afraid she won't accept him." Lily replied, looking at the couple in question.

"Remus is afraid?" James asked, "I didn't think he was afraid of anything."

"He's afraid of plenty of things. You just have to know how to read it."

"What else is he afraid of?"

"Not much, actually. He's not afraid of abnormalities, that would be hypocritical. But he is afraid of people that are afraid of those abnormalities. His biggest fear, though, is that those he cares about won't be able to see past the abnormal."

"So he's afraid of being alone?"

Lily shook her head. "Only if it's because of his 'furry little problem'."

James shook his head, "I don't see how you can read them so easily but not be able to…"

"To read you?" Lily asked softly.

"Yeah, to read me."

Lily shrugged, "If you ever figure it out, let me know."

Lily suddenly felt a firm grasp on her arm and looked to see who had grabbed her arm, trying to pull away instinctively.

"May I cut in?" Adam Becker asked, not for a second lessening his grip on Lily's arm.

James' face hardened and he looked to Lily. She nodded slightly, unsure herself if she should let him.

"Fine, but don't you even think of trying something." James growled warningly. "And let go of her."

Adam let go, so James gave Lily a reassuring half smile and walked away, glancing back at the pair every couple of seconds.

"We've been apart for a couple weeks and you've already gone running to James Potter to kiss the bruises." Adam laughed, "Won't you learn that the hurt he'll cause you will always be worse than the hurt anyone else could inflict?"

"You have no right to lecture me about James Potter. I'll be friends with whomever I wish to be friends with," Lily replied snappily.

"Lily Marie," Adam shook his head, "You have so much left to learn. But I'll forgive you this one time. Come back to me, leave James Potter and Sirius Black. You're independent; you don't need them trying to protect you from anything, especially me."

Lily glanced over and saw that James and Sirius were both watching the pair carefully, ready to intervene if need be. Not too long ago, that would have made her angry, but right now it just seemed comforting to know they were watching out for her.

"I need to talk to you," Adam demanded.

"Well then talk."

"Not here, not with all these people," Adam insisted.

"Talk here or not at all."

Adam grabbed her waist and pulled her off the dance floor, towards the doors to the Entrance Hall. He dragged her out the doors and into a corridor that had an entrance blocked by a tapestry. Lily opened her mouth to scream or something, but Adam clamped his hand over her mouth and held tightly so that she couldn't bite him either.

"Lily Marie, you will get rid of James Potter and you will come back to me," Adam growled, "Then you'll turn a blind eye to my activities. People will call you stupid, but your faith in me will never waver. You got that?"

"I'll never come back to you," Lily spat. "And you'd better watch out, because I know that James and Sirius will be here any second."

"I have your sister's location," Adam threatened, "I know how to make you do what I want. Don't force me to have to resort to that."

Lily hesitated, "You're lying."

"Petunia attends St. Julia's Boarding School for Young Women of the Future in Scottsdale, Ireland."

Lily went pale and limp, "What do you want?"

"I want you, all of you."

"No!" Lily tried to jerk away, but couldn't manage to against his Quidditch muscles.

Adam pinned Lily to the wall and kissed her roughly. His body pressed up against her struggling one and his hands started to unzip her dress. Lily tried desperately to break away, but he was too strong for her so she decided to save her strength for any chance she had to get away.

When Adam noticed Lily had stopped struggling, he let go of her arms completely and began to kiss her even more fervently, thinking she had tired and he had won.

* * *

**Same Time: James & Sirius**

When Adam had cut in, James had left the dance floor, watching Lily closely for any signs of trouble. Sirius had spotted James standing by himself and left Marlene to find out what was going on. Then, worried about Lily himself, he joined James in the surveillance of Adam's actions. The two saw Lily glance over at one point and turn away before they could catch her eye. When they saw she was getting agitated, the two decided to go over and see if she needed them.

That was when the two Ravenclaw beaters stepped in front of them and stood, talking with their dates. James and Sirius moved to the side to look around them, but when they looked at the place where Lily and Adam had been, they couldn't find them.

"Where'd they go?" Sirius asked.

"I don't know, but we have to get the others. Lily might be in trouble." James replied, hurriedly scanning the room to find Alice, Marlene, Dorcas, Peter, Remus and Em all standing at a table talking.

He and Sirius hurried over to join them and explained the problem.

"What if they're still here?" Remus asked, "We could miss them with all the people. Em and I will look in here. The rest of you can look outside in pairs."

The others quickly divided the various areas of the school and grounds and agreed to meet in the Entrance Hall once they found something. Peter, Alice and Dorcas grabbed their dates and headed off to search. Marlene went with James and Sirius and Remus and Em started climbing stairs to search the top floors.

"I'm worried," Marlene whispered to Sirius as the three started their search just outside the Great Hall. They were supposed to search the ground floor and the dungeons.

"I'll kill him if he does anything to her," James growled to himself.

"Not if I get him first," Sirius replied, "Lily's becoming like a sister and I'm not about to let some filthy Ravenclaw get away with hurting her."

"Wait, do you hear something?" Marlene asked, stopping in the middle of the hallway to listen. James and Sirius stopped to listen too.

"Sounds like voices, come on," James started towards the voices which seemed to be coming from near the stairs.

The three hurried over, stopping outside a tapestry covered tunnel to listen to the talking, but that seemed to have stopped. The three looked at each other, silently agreeing to wait another few seconds to see if they could tell it was Lily before going in. That's when they heard a yell of surprise and pain and decided to rush in. They were met with an empty passage way, but hey could still hear voices further down the corridor. And one of them was Lily's.

* * *

**Same Time: Lily**

Lily was pinned to the wall and had stopped struggling. That was when Adam made his mistake; he changed the way he was standing slightly, so that he had one leg on either side of Lily's right leg. Thinking quickly, Lily brought her knee up hard and fast. Adam crumpled to the floor of the passage in pain.

"That was a smart move Lily Marie, but also a dumb one." Adam had also thought fast and, despite the pain he was in, he had his wand trained on her.

Lily's emerald green eyes widened as she realized that she had left her wand upstairs in the dormitory.

"You don't have your wand," Adam observed, his face curling into a smirk. "You're helpless. If you want to get out of here, you have to do as I say."

Lily closed her eyes, a single tear rolling down her cheek as she realized that she was trapped. There was no way to get out of the situation.

"Good girl, Lily Marie. First things first, that dress used to be so pretty, but now it's not so you should take it off."

Trembling, Lily began to fiddle slowly with the zipper on the back of her dress. It was already a quarter of the way undone, so it wouldn't be much time until she was standing there in her undergarments. She wasted as much time as possible, taking forever to pull the sleeves off and step out of the garment, hoping for help to arrive. But none did.

"Ah, Lily Marie, I'm getting quite hot. Do you think you could be a doll?"

Adam laughed at his own pun and Lily slowly sank to the ground, refusing to cry and let him see she was terrified. She would not let him break her. She was just unbuttoning the last button on his white shirt when she heard footsteps running down the corridor. Taking a deep breath, Lily let out a shriek, dodging the hex that Adam sent her way for it.

Less than a second later, James, Sirius and Marlene came sprinting around the corner. Sirius and Marlene disabling Adam and hitting him with a full body bind. James went over to Lily as Sirius and Marlene were taking care of Adam.

"Lily, are you okay?" James asked the redhead who had sunk to the floor against the wall and pulled her knees up to her chin, hugging her legs tightly.

Lily shook her head.

"Are you ok? Did he hurt you? In any way at all? If he did, I'm g—" James was stopped by the look on Lily's face, then mentally smacked himself for asking such a stupid question. Of course she wasn't all right.

Lily nodded.

"Show me," James sat down next to her and Lily held out her arm where bruises from Adam's grip were already starting to form.

Lily's face was tear-stained because she wasn't afraid to cry anymore, and she shivered, half from being scared and half from the drafty corridor because she was still in her underwear. She felt as if she could never be safe again, and was pressed up as close to the cold stone as possible. James noticed that Lily was shivering and picked up the dress.

"Lily, put this back on. You're freezing."

Lily shook her head, new tears forming at the sight of the emerald dress that was once pretty, but now horrified her because of what had happened.

James wanted nothing more than to hold Lily and tell her everything was going to be okay, but he wasn't stupid. He knew that the only people who might be able to physically comfort Lily were Alice, Dorcas, Marlene, and Em. Even Sirius, the human teddy bear, would probably not be able to offer a comforting hug. But James did what he could. He took off his own tunic and transfigured it into a thick warm blanket, draping it around Lily's shivering shoulders.

"Come on, Lily," Marlene sat on Lily's other side, "Let's go see Dumbledore."

Lily shook her head and spoke for the first time, "I don't want anyone to know. They'll think I'm weak."

"Lily, nobody could ever think you were weak because of this or anything else," James replied, wishing that he could kill Adam for doing this. "And you'll be thought of as stronger if you go and tell Dumbledore."

Lily listened, but didn't look at James as he spoke, instead staring at the dress that lay on the floor.

"Come on, Lily," Marlene spoke softly, "Let's go."

Lily stood up slowly, pulling the blanket tightly around her. James picked up the dress and Sirius roughly pulled Adam to his feet.

"You're lucky we don't kill you," Sirius threatened.

"We should," James agreed, "But we'll take you to Dumbledore instead."

The group started down the hallway, Lily still trembling, Marlene with one arm around her and glaring fiercely at the portraits on the wall who were watching curiously, James clutching Lily's emerald dress and Sirius helping Adam down the hallway with the occasional kick to the backside. When they got to Dumbledore's office, they stopped. Lily stared at the gargoyle while the others suggested passwords.

"Apple tart? Lemon poppyseed?"

"Chocolate covered strawberries? Lemon cough drop?"

"Blood flavored lollipops? Acid drops?"

"Chocolate frogs? Pumpkin Pasties?"

Sirius, Marlene, and James looked at each other, wondering what to do now. They couldn't stand in the hallway forever but the gargoyle wouldn't let them through.

"Raspberry Blow Pop," Lily announced quietly, the gargoyle swinging open obligingly.

The other three looked at each other and shrugged. James and Marlene followed Lily onto the spiraling stairs; Sirius gave Adam a little kick and followed behind. When they reached the top, Lily was standing and staring at the door to Dumbledore's office. Marlene nudged James who knocked on the door.

"Come in!"

James opened the door and stepped into the office, Marlene ushering Lily behind him and Sirius kicking Adam behind them. Dumbledore looked up at the group and James swore he could see concern in the old man's twinkling blue eyes as he asked them to sit and conjured chairs for them.

"Mr. Black, please unbind Mr. Becker," Dumbledore asked after the Gryffindors had seated themselves, Lily as far away from everyone else as possible.

Sirius hesitated, looking to Lily who avoided his gaze and was staring instead out the window. He nodded, flicked his wand and Adam's bindings fell to the floor.

"I think, Mr. Potter, that you should tell me what is going on," Dumbledore placed his elbows on his desk so that his fingertips barely touched and then peered over them at the group.

James told his part of the story the best he could, glancing occasionally over at Lily who appeared to be doing her very best to not hear the conversation, all the while answering Dumbledore's few questions the best that he could. When he was done, he looked up at Dumbledore who simply nodded in reply.

"It would seem that we should hear Mr. Becker's version next. Would you be so kind, Mr. Becker?"

Adam stayed quiet, figuring it was better to remain silent than to either admit anything or plead innocence with any of the explanations he had come up with. Dumbledore simply nodded and turned to Lily.

"Miss Evans," Dumbledore said kindly, "I'm afraid I'm going to need you to relive your experience tonight for me. Can you do that?"

Lily turned her blank gaze on Dumbledore and blinked slowly. He stared back at her, his twinkling blue eyes serious. Then she nodded once and began to talk.

James was shocked by how calm she sounded, how detached, as if she were not talking about something that had happened to her, but rather something that she had read in a book. That's when James realized that she hadn't accepted that it had happened to her and was still hoping she would wake up, and find it all a dream. But it wasn't a dream and she needed time to realize that.

When she had finished Lily turned and stared silently out the window again. Dumbledore had simply let her talk and not asked any questions, now he turned a stern gaze on Adam Becker.

"I should expel you. However, I think I shall let Miss Evans decide your punishment," Dumbledore turned his blue eyes on Lily again, as did everyone else in the room, including Adam. His dark blue eyes looked pleadingly at her and she involuntarily shuddered, pulling the blanket tighter around her slim frame.

Lily was silent for several long minutes during which everyone wondered what was going through her mind at that moment. Sirius wanted to see Adam expelled and thrown out into the world. Marlene wished that she could make the decision for Lily, but knew that she had to do this for herself. As for James, he wanted Adam gone, but he also knew that Lily was a compassionate and forgiving person and he wanted her to make the decision that she thought was best for her.

But none of their opinions really mattered at the moment, after all, this was Lily's decision and hers alone. And so, the redhead sat staring out the window but not really seeing anything, her beautiful emerald eyes glazed over as she thought about the situation.

Part of her wanted Adam Becker to suffer, really suffer for what he had done to her. She wanted him to get kicked out of Hogwarts and thrown into the real world and all its difficulties. She wanted him to hurt, even if he could never hurt as much as she did.

But there was another part of her that wanted to forgive him, send him to detention for a while and kick him off the Quidditch team, but keep him at the school. He would probably hardly suffer if he stayed at the school, he'd most likely be terrorizing another girl next week. But for some reason Lily thought he wouldn't. She wanted to give him a break and show him that she was the better person.

After debating with herself for a while, Lily looked up into Dumbledore's eyes, "Don't expel him. Take away Quidditch, give him detentions, anything, but don't expel him."

"Are you sure Miss Evans?" Dumbledore asked.

Lily didn't hesitate, just nodded her reply.

"Then I shall arrange things with Mr. Becker. Would you take Miss Evans to the Hospital Wing, Mr. Potter?"

"Of course, sir," James replied, standing up.

"What about us, sir?" Marlene asked, "I should be the one to take Lily to the Hospital Wing."

"I think Mr. Potter is perfectly capable," Dumbledore replied. "And you and Mr. Black need to hunt down the rest of your friends. I believe they are probably waiting in the Entrance Hall by now, but you may need to search for them elsewhere in the castle."

"Oh!" Marlene exclaimed, jumping up and pulling Sirius with her, "I forgot about them. They must be worried about us!"

"And Alice is probably on the verge of hysterics wondering about her best friend," Sirius added.

Marlene's eyes widened and she dragged Sirius out of the office with a quick 'goodbye, sir!'

Lily stood up and wrapped her blanket securely around herself. James looked at her and saw how vulnerable she was, her gorgeous eyes wide with shock. Her arms were outside of the blanket and James felt anger rising as he caught his first good look at her bruises. Taking a deep breath, James made a quick decision.

He reached over and took her hand, gently leading her out of the office. She looked panicked for a second, but he squeezed her hand reassuringly. The two started the walk towards the Hospital Wing.

"Don't worry, Lils," James assured her quietly, "You're safe now and you did the right thing by not expelling him."

Lily blinked and looked unsettled. Then she said softly, so that James almost didn't hear, "How do you know?"

James looked at her, "I know you didn't want to stoop to getting revenge. It's going to be hard seeing him every day, but it's just for the rest of the year and you've proved you're the better person."

"I-I don't know if I can do it," Lily took a shaky breath, stopping in the middle of the hall.

James wrapped his arms around Lily. She stiffened and then forced herself to relax, burying her face in James' chest.

"You can do anything, Lily," James assured her, "And you won't have to do it by yourself. You've got me and Sirius, Marlene, Alice, Dorcas, Remus, Em, and Peter. We're not going to give up on you, but you'll have to trust us."

Lily nodded weakly into James' chest, hoping that he was right.

* * *

**_Don't be mad at me!_**

**_That's the way the story is going... and you will see why later. For those of you that think it's stupid for me to have her be attacked and everything, you may want to understand that I'm not stupid. I know that anyone is going to be terrified of people in general after an attack like that, but this just shows how strong willed Lily is that she is refusing to let him get the best of her. Plus, it shows how much she is learning to trust a certain Marauder... I don't have years and years to write about her recovery so perhaps it isn't entirely realistic, but that is why this is fiction. Please ignore any problems you see in regards to that._**

**_So please, don't be mad. And let me know if you think I need to change the rating... I really think it's fine now, but you never know._**

**_Oh, and Lily and James aren't getting together for a while still. It's only Halloween of their 6th Year after all and they don't get together until their 7th._**

**_Thanks for your constant support and feedback!_**

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	24. Chapter 24: The Strange Factor

_Thanks my loyal readers/reviewers! You mean the world to me... thanks to my beta reader, Michelle, you are amazing and somehow always manage to get me the chapters at the exact moment that they will cheer me up!_

_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_

* * *

**6TH Year: Following Weeks **

Lily spent the week following her attack talking little, mostly to James and Alice, and never outside their group of Gryffindors. Teachers looked at her with concern as she walked into their classes and whispers followed her throughout the corridors. She was never alone, James spent all of his spare time with her and the others were never far away either. During Quidditch practice, Lily would either be in prefect meetings or sitting with Remus and Em in the stands watching.

But one day, about a week and a half after Halloween, Lily came down the stairs from the dormitory, bright and cheery. She looped one arm through James' and the other through Sirius' and grinned at them.

"Hungry boys?" Lily quipped.

James and Sirius stared at her. Then James shook his head and asked, "What's this new attitude, Lily?"

Remus elbowed him and James quickly added, "Not that it's a bad thing or anything. In fact, I think it's good; very very good."

Lily laughed, "I just decided it was time for me to snap back to reality. Something horrible happened to me and I just have to get past it now."

Marlene took Sirius' other arm and Sirius looked at her. Then he pulled her slightly away from the rest of the group, "How long has she been like this?"

"All morning," Marlene replied, "I think she may be healing."

Sirius looked at Lily questioningly as she joked with James, "I'm just afraid she's putting on a false front."

"Don't be such a pessimist," Marlene scolded. "I think it's a good thing that Lily's happy again."

"Oh, it's a very good thing she's happy. But yesterday she was moping about, and this morning she's suddenly little miss sunshine. It's just kind of strange, you know?"

"I know, but let's see how this goes."

Sirius nodded his agreement and the two made their way back to the group.

It wasn't for another couple of weeks that James noticed that Lily wasn't necessarily as happy as she let on. It was the day that they were walking to Charms and passed Adam in the corridor. Lily went deadly silent in the middle of her sentence and froze, staring wide eyed at him. She hadn't ever been this close to him before and it was all she could do to keep herself from turning and running.

"Lily?" James asked, touching Lily's arm lightly but Lily jerked away from his touch in panic, having flashbacks to the attack in the dark corridor. Her eyes were wild as her gaze flickered around at all of the people standing in the corridor, then she panicked and was off like a shot, sprinting for Gryffindor Tower as fast as she could, leaving her bag on the ground where she had been standing a second ago.

"Take our things to class," James said, handing his bag to Sirius and Lily's to Remus. Then he ran off after Lily.

When he found her, she was sitting against the wall in a quiet hallway halfway to Gryffindor Tower , knees tucked against her chest and face buried in her skirt. Her sobs made her slim frame tremble. James walked over and sank onto the floor beside her.

"Lily, what was that about?" James asked quietly.

Lily threw her arms around James' neck and sobbed into his shoulder. He rubbed her back softly until she quieted down.

"It was like I was living it all over again," Lily whispered, "Every time I close my eyes, all I can see is him."

James didn't know what he should say to that, so he just gave her a slight squeeze.

Lily sat up and wiped her eyes, "It was stupid. I'm stupid. Nothing's happening, it's all over. I'm being silly."

"Lily, you aren't being stupid or silly. It's okay to be afraid. In fact, I'd be more worried if you weren't."

Lily didn't reply, but instead stood up. "We should get to Charms before we're late."

"Yeah," James agreed, standing up, "But only if you're sure you're completely okay."

Lily nodded and the two walked down the corridors towards the Charms classroom, barely making it into the classroom before the bell rang.

That night, James was having trouble sleeping, so he headed down to the Common Room, thinking maybe he'd get a midnight snack from the kitchens. When he stepped into the Common Room though, he heard sobbing coming from in front of the fire. He planned to just slip past, thinking it was one of the third years crying over their lost love or something. But when James looked over, he saw a very familiar redhead sitting in front of the fire.

Sighing, he sat down beside her, "What's wrong, Lils?"

"I close my eyes and there he is," Lily whispered, "I can't get away from it anymore. I can't sleep without seeing him pointing his wand at me or feeling his lips on mine."

"I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but that will go away." James assured, "But right now you need to get some sleep."

"I can't, James!" Lily's eyes grew fearful, "I'll see him again."

"What if you're not by yourself? Do you think you'd be alright then?"

"I don't know, but I'm too afraid to sleep."

"Come on," James pulled Lily up off the floor and led her back up to his dorm. "Lay down, Lils."

"James, what is everyone going to say?" Lily asked, looking around at the sleeping forms of Sirius, Remus, Peter, and Frank.

"If they're even up before you leave in the morning, they're not going to care. I may get ragged on for talking you into sleeping in my bed with me, but that doesn't matter. All that matters is that you feel safe enough to sleep."

"And you think I'm going to feel safe enough with you?" Lily was obviously already feeling safer, since she was regaining a bit of her normal spunk.

"Do you?"

"Strangely, yes."

"Then come on, it's late. Let's get you to bed."

Lily climbed onto half of James' bed and James hopped onto the other half. Laying down, Lily took James' arm and wrapped it around her shoulders. Then she lay her head on his shoulder and whispered softly, "Thanks, James."

"G'night, Lily." James replied simply.

When James woke up the next morning, Lily was already gone. He wasn't surprised by her absence, but he still felt disappointment when she wasn't the first thing he saw when he woke up.

* * *

**6TH Year: Winter Time**

Lily was improving over time, slowly opening up again, but she still spoke rarely in classes or outside the group. But, on the bright side, she and James were closer than ever. For a week or two, Lily slept in James' room, but then she stopped coming every night and now she only came occasionally.

But today, nobody was worried about anything. Why was that? Well, it was the first snow of the year and classes were cancelled for the entire day. So, of course, all the students were getting dressed in order to head out into the snow.

"Lily, toss me my hat, will you?" Dorcas asked as she realized that her hat was still lying on the vanity table that Lily was sitting at.

"Here you go," Lily tossed the hat in Dorcas' general direction and finished putting on her makeup. "Anyone seen _my_ hat?"

"Um, no. Just have James transfigure some snow into one or something," Dorcas suggested.

"It's on the bed," Alice laughed as Lily glared at Dorcas. "Right next to your gloves."

Lily grabbed her hat and pulled it on over her red hair that was pin straight today. Then she pulled on her matching gloves, coat, and scarf and grabbed Alice's arm, pulling her to the door.

"Come on!" Lily cried, "I don't to get stuck with all the sucky snow!"

Dorcas, Emmeline, and Marlene grabbed their things and followed Lily and Alice out of the dorm and down to the common room. Marlene was nearly run over by an excited Sirius who was running down the stairs from the boys' dormitories. James, Remus, and Peter were close behind him with Frank lagging a little behind them.

"Snow!" Sirius exclaimed, grabbing his girlfriend and dragging her over to the Portrait Hole.

"Yes, Sirius, snow." Marlene replied, "But let's walk like normal people."

"Did you not see the snow?!"

"I saw the snow, but it's not going anywhere."

Sirius stared at her blankly, "Do you not understand what snow is?"

Marlene sighed, "It's frozen water."

Sirius shook his head violently, "Snow is not just frozen water. Snow is the very embodiment of fun. It allows us to wage friendly harmless wars and make people that we won't have to pay to raise. Plus it can serve as a tasty snack, but don't eat the yellow kind."

"Thank you, Sirius," Dorcas rolled her eyes, "I wasn't aware of that."

"My pleasure," Sirius bowed, not quite catching the sarcasm. "Now can we go play in the snow?!"

"Come on, let's go," Lily tugged James' arm. "I want to play in the snow!"

Sirius brightened immediately, "If Lily-rose wants to play in the snow, we'd better go!"

"I want to play in the snow!"

James let himself be pulled out of the Portrait Hole. The others followed, Lily and Sirius leading the way with James and Marlene being dragged behind them. A few minutes later the group was out in the snow.

"Snow war?" Lily asked, looking to the others, "Like old times?"

"Yeah!" Sirius shouted, "Only bigger teams."

"Two teams?" Lily suggested.

"Boys on girls?" Marlene asked.

"No way, Lily and Marlene will kick our sorry butts!" James exclaimed.

"You know it," Lily laughed, "How about me and Sirius are captains and we pick teams?"

"I pick first!" Sirius shouted. "Marlene! I pick Marlene!"

"James," Lily said calmly.

"Frank!"

"Remus."

"Alice!"

"Em."

"Peter!"

"Then I get Dorcas, ha! My team is going to kill your team, Sirius!"

"Nu huh, I've got Frank and Marlene! And Peter is a snowball making machine!"

"Peter can't aim and besides I've got Remus, Dorcas, Em and James!" Lily stuck her tongue out childishly. "I win!"

Sirius glared, "We'll see about that. Come on team, we have twenty minutes to build our fortifications!"

Both teams sprinted off in opposite directions to get their forts ready. Sirius' team decided to build theirs like a giant tower with surrounding guard wall. Lily's team started building theirs in the shape of a miniature Hogwarts. Lily cast shield charms to protect it that kept the other team from coming within throwing range. As they were building their respective forts, more and more students joined each team so that soon nearly 150 assorted students were on each team.

"We need a strategy!" Lily pounded her fist on the table. "Remus, I believe that's your department."

Her original team was assembled in the top room of the tallest tower. Their fort was so elaborate that it even had furniture in the rooms.

Remus saluted, "Yes ma'am! Our strategy is this. I will command a small strike force to distract the opposition. Dorcas' team will then launch a surprise attack from behind."

"How many soldiers do you need?" Lily asked.

"About fifteen for me."

"And you Dorcas?"

"I need at least thirty. The rest should remain here to guard our own fort against the imminent attack," Dorcas replied.

"Emmeline, you are in charge of any repair work. You will take our most talented at that sort of thing and stand ready. James, you're in charge of defenses. I will take two for helping me and one page to relay messages." Lily announced. "Now, let's go team!"

The Gryffindors put their hands in a pile and let out a war cry before heading off to their respective jobs. Meanwhile, in Sirius' fort, a similar occurrence was taking place. It wasn't long before Remus and Dorcas were leading their forces out of the castle and heading off to open the first battle.

"These three yours, Em?" Lily asked, looking at the remaining troops.

"Yes, ma'am!" Em nodded a quick affirmation.

"Okay, stand ready."

"Will do, ma'am!"

"You, you, and you, come with me," Lily pointed to a fifth year Ravenclaw, a seventh year Gryffindor, and a first year Hufflepuff. "The rest are yours, James. Divide and conquer."

Em and James saluted as Lily strode off to her office in the tower, her three helpers trailing behind her.

"Names please," Lily said, glancing out a window to see how Remus' plan was working so far.

"Jon McDerman, ma'am." The fifth year said.

"Alyson Davis," The seventh year announced, "But you know that, ma'am."

"And you?" Lily asked the first year.

"Andrew Jefferson, at your service, ma'am!" The minute little first year attempted a salute but ended up smacking himself in the forehead instead.

"Very good," Lily nodded. " Jefferson, you can wait outside. You're our messenger."

The first year nodded and darted out of the room.

"Alyson, McDerman, I have chosen you to be our counterintelligence. I need you to infiltrate the opposition's fortress and relay information back. It's a dangerous job, but that is precisely why I picked you. I know you can do it. You are both talented. Do you accept your mission?"

"Yes, ma'am!" The two shouted.

"Then go and don't get caught. I don't know what General Black may do if he catches you," Lily waved the two out of her office, "Oh and on your way out, send Jefferson in, will you?"

"Right away, ma'am," Alyson replied and the first year scurried into the room a minute later.

"You have a very important job, do you know that Jefferson?" Lily asked.

"Yes, ma'am!" The first year agreed.

"Can you do it? You look fast, are you?"

"I can do it, ma'am! I'm the fastest kid in my year!"

"Good, then I need you to carry this message to Captain Potter," Lily wrote a quick note on a scrap of paper and rolled it up, handing it to the Hufflepuff, "Give it to no one else."

"Yes, ma'am!" And with that, the first year shot out of the office.

Lily started up the stairs in the corner that led to the tower top. She emerged into the daylight to see that Remus' plan seemed to be working satisfactorily. Then she looked around to see if she could see Dorcas' forces, but they were well hidden and there was no sign that they even existed. Lily looked to Sirius' fort just in time to see two figures being ushered quickly inside the tower. She smiled, knowing that her spies were in place. It was only a matter of time now, all she had to do was wait.

"You think we have spies in our midst?" Sirius cried disbelievingly some time later, "Why would you think that?"

"General Evans always seems to know our move before we know our move," Alyson replied.

She had managed to get Sirius to trust her and now she was one of the commanding officers, relaying everything through McDerman to Lily. It was partly because of her that Lily's team had such a big advantage at this point.

"Trust no one outside this room!" Sirius exclaimed.

"I trust no one other than my personal underling, McDerman." Alyson replied.

The other commanders agreed, many of them naming a single person that they trusted.

Sirius sighed, "What is our next move then?"

"Might I suggest appointing Alice to find the spies?" Alyson suggested.

"Ah, Alice would be an excellent choice. Would you agree Alice?" Sirius asked.

"Of course, General Black!" Alice exclaimed.

"Well get to it then! Do we have any strategy ideas?"

"Surrender," Peter suggested.

"A surrender? Have you been hit, Wormtail?" Sirius waved his hands wildly and looked to his friend.

"No, but I thought a fake surrender…"

"That's it!" Sirius shouted, "We'll launch a fake surrender!"

"Is that against the rules?" Alyson asked tentatively.

"The only rules are no magic and no rocks or ice in the snowballs!" Sirius exclaimed. "And I like to think of those more as guidelines anyway."

"Ah, yes," Alyson agreed, "Guidelines."

"So, here's the plan…"

Thirty minutes later, Lily was alerted to the plan and had responded by formulating her own counterattack to circumvent their fake surrender. She herself would venture out of the fort with James and Em as her protection. Remus would lead his force to witness the surrender and Dorcas would take her force and set them up to attack Sirius' surprise force. James' forces were to be left under the direction of a seventh year Gryffindor. When Sirius waved the white flag, Lily was on the tower roof, waiting calmly with James standing beside her.

"Showtime," Lily commented as she turned, pulling her cloak behind her as she headed down the stairs and out the door, James and Em on either side with Remus' forces drawing in close around them as they passed.

"I saw your white flag, General Black. Does this mean surrender?" Lily asked formally, "Should I have Captain Potter draw up the truce papers?"

"I'm afraid that this does not mean surrender, General Evans!" Sirius shouted, "NOW!"

But nothing happened and Sirius looked around, growing more and more panicked by the second. He turned to sprint back to the safety of his tower fortress, but stopped suddenly as he spotted Em's special force standing with Alyson and McDerman on the ramparts, waving a green scrap of a flag that perfectly matched Lily's scarf color.

"Oh dear, it looks as if you've lost your fort. General Black," Lily shook her head regretfully, "Those papers, Captain Potter?"

"Here you are General Evans, ma'am!" James handed Lily the papers and a quill.

"And here you are General Black. I'm sorry, but I believe you have no choice but to surrender."

Sirius looked around, thinking about what he could possibly do to turn the situation around, but he couldn't think of anything. Sighing he took the papers from James and read them.

"You, General Sirius Black, will have to stand up and sing in the midst of dinner tonight, and your entire team will have to join you in this endeavor." Sirius read out. "That's not too bad. I surrender."

Sirius signed his name on the line, initialed elsewhere, and then handed the papers back to Lily. Lily grinned and looked at the papers.

"It was nice doing business with you, General Black." Lily stuck out her hand and Sirius shook it. "We should really do this again sometime."

"Different teams though. I want you on my side next time, General Evans," Sirius agreed, shaking her hand firmly.

"Oh, look at that, it's dinnertime," Lily looped her arm through Sirius' and the pair led the way back into the school. Sirius wasn't the least bit grumpy at having lost and Lily wasn't the least bit smug at having beaten him.

"Those two are even stranger than usual when there's snow," Marlene commented to James as they headed up to the school.

James laughed, "I haven't seen Lily this happy in weeks though, so it's worth the strange factor."

Marlene looked at James sideways, "You really like her, don't you?"

James just grinned, "Oy, Lils, wait up! I don't want to miss Sirius' solo!"

James hurried up and looped his arm through Lily's free one, so that he and Sirius were walking on either side of her, linked by their arms. The trio headed into the school, looking forward to the singing that they would be witnessing later.

* * *

yayaya... it's been a horrible week, I'm not gonna lie. I really hope this chapter brought some joy into your lives though! **:p**

Love From,  
MotherCrumpet


	25. Chapter 25: Sod off You ARE a girl

**_A/N Oops, sorry guys. Looks like I still haven't quite grasped the concept of updating. Ugh, how long has it been? I don't think I even want to know. I'm so sorry, especially to those of you who have to go reread the last chapter to remember what is going on! I am a horrible person, I know. So horrible, that there is no way I'm JK Rowling. And yes, that was my disclaimer because I haven't put one in for a while._**

* * *

"I wish they'd hurry up and get together already," Lily sighed.

She and James were sitting on the couch that was closest to the fire. James' legs were propped up on the coffee table and Lily's were draped across James' lap. It was the first day of Christmas break and the whole gang was staying at school for the holidays. Well, the whole gang minus Peter.

"Who?" James asked, looking around the Common Room.

"Alice and Frank. She's fancied him since first year for Merlin's sake!" Lily pointed to the Portrait Hole where Frank and Alice were heading out to work on a project for potions.

"Ah," James nodded knowingly, "Maybe they just need a little help."

"I know you've got a plan James. Let's hear it."

"Well, we could lock them in a broom cupboard. That's a classic."

"No, you have got to have a better idea than that."

"Oh, I do." James assured, then he whispered the plan into Lily's ear.

"That just might work," Lily smirked. "But what if it backfires and we get stuck?"

"We'll have to wish for some food and take a nap." James shrugged.

"No joke about us passionately making out and getting together?" Lily asked teasingly, "I'm impressed, Mr. Potter."

"I'm giving you time, Miss Evans," James replied seriously, "No rushing of anyone or anything here. Friends is good."

"Thanks, James," Lily blushed slightly that he had let her know that he was waiting for her to be ready. She felt her stomach do a tiny little flip at the thought. Somehow, even after all she'd been through, she was wanting to try relationships again. Or, rather, she wanted to try a relationship with James, but just not quite yet.

"So, when should we put this plan into action?" James asked.

"Starting tonight," Lily replied, "I want them together by Christmas if at all possible."

"Why haven't they gotten together yet?"

"My guess is because Frank is shy and Alice isn't about to ask a guy out."

"You two look comfortable," Sirius winked as he and Marlene walked up.

James shrugged and Lily blushed again, both of which Sirius and Marlene noted. They shared a look and grinned, both thinking that James was playing down everything to keep Lily comfortable and that Lily was getting closer and closer to being ready to date him.

"So, what are you two over here plotting about?" Marlene asked, "You both have that look."

"What look?" said James. While Lily exclaimed, "Nothing!"

"Okay, now I'm really suspicious. What is it?"

"We're not plotting anything," Lily insisted.

"Come on. Sirius and I are two of your best friends," Marlene urged.

"You'll have to wait and see like everyone else," James announced, placing his hand over Lily's mouth to keep her from telling their plan.

Sirius and Marlene shared another look and walked away, Marlene shooting suspicious looks back at James and Lily as she went.

"I wasn't going to say anything!" Lily protested as she pulled James' hand off her mouth.

"Of course you weren't," James laughed, noticing Lily hadn't let go of his hand.

"I wasn't! I was going to say that they'd find out later."

"Okay, sorry, Lils."

"You should be," Lily pouted.

Sirius and Marlene watched from across the Common Room.

"Look at them, they are flirting like crazy!" Marlene exclaimed, "She's got her legs propped up on his and everything!"

"About time," Sirius replied, grinning for his friend, "Prongs has wanted this for years."

"She didn't let go of his hand. How long do you think it's going to be?"

"Are we starting a bet pool?" Sirius asked eagerly, "I'd say they won't be official until next year."

"You're on, thirty sickles they're together by the end of the year!" Marlene stuck out her hand, "Should we get the rest in on this bet?"

"Yeah, Remus is always up for making some money."

"So is Dorcas."

"Oh, look at that," Sirius pointed, "He's tickling her."

"I am so winning this bet."

"We'll see about that, my dear Miss McKinnon."

* * *

**6****TH**** Year: That Night**

"Why are we going out tonight?" Alice asked Lily again.

"You'll see. It's a surprise," Lily replied.

She and Alice were getting ready to go out for an evening stroll or something. Alice wasn't exactly sure what was going on because Lily point blank refused to tell her.

"I'm not sure I like surprises," Alice sighed.

"You'll love this one, trust me," Lily grinned excitedly. "Now grab your jacket and let's go."

The two Gryffindor girls headed out into the school, Lily leading the way to the Room of Requirement.

"Oh! Alice, you go on in here. I've forgotten something for your surprise." Lily opened the door to the Room of Requirement and Alice walked inside.

Then Lily looked around and headed back down the hallway in the direction they had come from. James stepped out of a side hallway and caught her.

"I told Frank I needed to go and grab a book for the essay I was helping him with."

"Alice thinks I forgot something for her surprise."

"Do we need to shut them in there?" James asked.

"No, do you think it will work?"

"We said we wanted a room that would get them together, so I think it will work."

Lily nodded, "Where to then?"

"Let's go outside in the snow."

"I don't have my coat and it's dark."

James transfigured a couple spare pieces of parchment from his pocket into two coats, two hats, two scarves and two pairs of gloves. "There, now you'll be plenty warm."

"It's still dark," Lily protested halfheartedly.

"Not really, the moon was full a few days ago so it's still pretty bright. Come on, Lils. Let's go outside and play in the snow."

"Okay," Lily pulled on her coat, gloves, scarf and hat. James did the same. Then Lily took James' hand, lacing their fingers together. James looked at her questioningly and she blushed, smiling slightly. "You wanted to play in the snow. Let's go."

The happy pair hurried out into the snow, forgetting that Alice and Frank were probably getting together right at that moment.

"James, help me up so I don't mess up the snow angel." Lily called.

"I'm supposed to mess up my own snow angel so I can save yours?" James grumbled.

"Pretty much."

James stood up, trying but not succeeding to save his own snow angel as he did so. Then he took Lily's outstretched hand and pulled her up, leaving her snow angel perfect on the ground.

"Thanks," Lily grinned at her snow angel, "Good work, Mr. Potter."

"Why, thank you, Miss Evans," James replied, nodding gratefully, "I do try."

"Oooh, let's go ice skating!" Lily exclaimed, grabbing James' hand again and pulling him towards the lake.

"We don't have skates," James protested.

"You're a transfiguration genius!" Lily pointed out, "I doubt we'll have any difficulties."

"True." James made four snowballs and pulled out his wand, waving it and muttering under his breath. Then he handed Lily a pair of skates and they both pulled their pairs on.

"Give me your hand. I haven't skated for a while," Lily said as she stepped onto the ice.

"Lils, I really don't skate very well," James warned, giving her his hand anyway.

"You complain too much," Lily announced decidedly, pulling him out onto the ice and skating away.

After a couple of minutes, James had yet to fall down, so Lily was beginning to doubt that he really had difficulties skating.

"I'm letting go. I don't think you have problems skating at all," Lily announced.

"That's it. You caught me. I just like holding your hand."

Lily laughed and let go. James wobbled slightly and promptly fell over.

"Oof!" James exclaimed as he hit the ice, "See, I told you I didn't skate well."

"James, that hardly counts as not skating well. You've fallen once!"

"And it hurt. I'm not fond of skating, Lils."

"Aww, did the little bump bruise your ego?" Lily teased.

"If you must know, yes it did. The prettiest girl in the school just watched me fall on my arse. It would bruise anyone's ego."

Lily skated over to James and helped him up, "Okay, we'll stop skating then."

James scrambled up off the ice and grabbed Lily's hands in his. "You can skate backwards, right?"

"Yes James, I can skate backwards," Lily laughed, as she started doing so, pulling James along with her.

The pair got back to the edge of the lake and James immediately sat down and started pulling off his skates. Lily skated back onto the ice and did a couple tricks before plopping down beside him to remove her own skates.

"So, want to go in and get some hot chocolate?" James asked.

"Yeah, I'm cold."

James pulled his gloves off and pulled off one of Lily's gloves too, "You're not too cold."

"Now I am!" Lily exclaimed, pulling her hand back and quickly replacing her glove.

"It's not like you've gotten hypothermia or anything," James muttered.

"How do you know? Hmm? Maybe my fingers are turning purple and fixin to fall off right now!" Lily shot back.

"Fixin?" James shook his head, "Have you been watching the Muggle-American-picture-box-thingy again?"

Lily stuck her tongue out at him, grabbed her skates and started off. James watched her, laughing. One second she was there and the next second she was gone.

"Lily?" James asked, following her and stopping at the top of a huge snowdrift that Lily had fallen in.

"You want to help me out?" Lily called, "I'm a little stuck."

"I see that."

"You want to do something about that?"

"I dunno."

Lily fixed him with a glare.

"Relax Lils. I'm fixin to."

James took hold of Lily's hand and started to pull her out of the drift, but she tugged hard suddenly causing James to lose his balance and fall beside her into the monster drift.

"Ah!" James shouted as he landed with a thump in the thick snow.

"You scream like a girl," Lily dead panned.

"Sod off. You are a girl," James retorted.

"I'm glad you noticed."

"I noticed years ago but you know that."

Lily grinned. James shifted slightly and she realized just how close they really were. Her hand was still holding his, and she moved her hand so that their fingers were interlaced. James moved closer, but then stopped, letting Lily make the decision. Her eyes flickered closed and she moved slightly, her lips brushing James'. This was what James must have been waiting for, because he caught her lips with his and kissed her, almost lazily.

Lily felt something she had never felt before course through her veins. She wanted this kiss. But then, his tongue brushed her bottom lip and she panicked. Suddenly, it was as if she was being pinned against the wall by Adam again. Eyes flying open, she pushed James away and scrambled away.

"Lils, what's wrong?"

"I-I-I can't! I have to go!"

James sat in the snowdrift, knowing that it was better to let her go than to chase after her right now, but he cursed loudly all the same. Why did he have to make the mistake, simply kissing her was enough. He knew she would have to take it slowly, why had he pushed her? Like an idiot. Within a minute he had lost everything he had been working towards for months, and it was all his fault.

* * *

**_A/N Bummer, poor James. Ah well, obviously he'll get another shot and get her in the end... The exciting part is seeing exactly how it is that he does that. I shall try to update again soon, but as it is summertime I am making no promises. The reason I haven't updated was because I was working on my original stories recently. But I need a break from them, so its probably back to fanfiction where I belong!_**

**_Love From,_**

**_The Very Sincerly Sorry,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	26. Chapter 26: Harold's Hungry

**6****TH**** Year: Christmas Eve **

It had been half a week since 'the incident', as James was now calling it, and Lily had yet to talk to him. In fact, James had not even seen Lily since 'the incident', although he had been looking.

"Come on Prongs. She'll come around. She just needs time." Remus sighed, gazing concernedly at his friend over his book.

"She hasn't come to eat since the first day of break," James replied. "I know she needs time, but I still can't help being worried."

Sirius heaved a huge sigh, "I wasn't supposed to tell you this Prongsie, but you're much to worried for me to not tell you. I saw Lily-rose in the kitchens yesterday. She's eating plenty and she's not about to waste away."

"Tomorrow is Christmas. She's not about to miss Christmas," Peter pointed out.

James shrugged, "I don't know how much longer I can leave her alone without checking on her."

"Give her until tonight James," Marlene suggested as she sat down beside Sirius. "She wants to talk to you on her own."

"Wadyagetme!" Sirius began to bounce up and down, his eyes bugging out slightly as he looked pleadingly at Marlene.

"I'm not going to tell you what I got you, Sirius. You'll just have to wait until tonight."

"I thought Christmas was tomorrow," Peter said confusedly.

"It is, Pete. We're opening our presents from each other tonight on our date though so that we get a little more time alone and maybe some privacy," Marlene explained.

"Can they do that?" Peter demanded, turning to Remus, "Just choose to celebrate Christmas on a day that isn't Christmas?!"

"I think they cleared it with Santa, Wormtail," Remus replied.

"Did you?" Peter turned to give Sirius a very stern look. "Padfoot, did you clear your celebration of Christmas on a day other than Christmas with the jolly old fat guy that is in charge of the celebration of Christmas?"

"You don't think he'll care, do you Remus?" Sirius gasped, looking to his smart friend.

"I don't know, Pad. He's supposed to be jolly, but even jolly old fat guys might not like commonplace people messing with their holiday," Remus shrugged.

"Oh no! Marlene, we have to go clear it with Santa right now!" Sirius jumped up and grabbed his girlfriend's hand, pulling her after him out of the Common Room.

"Wait!" Peter called after them, jumping up and chasing behind them. "Tell Santa that I want new bunny pajamas!"

The Portrait Hole banged closed behind the trio, leaving the Common Room silent.

"Please tell me that I'm dreaming," James shook his head and looked to Remus. "I'll wake up tomorrow morning and find out that I have nice, sane friends."

"That's what I say every day, Prongs, and I've yet to wake up," Remus replied, turning back to his book with a shake of his head.

"Well, that certainly was the most entertaining thing I've seen all week."

"Lily!" James exclaimed, turning half around to see the redhead leaning on the back of his chair and staring off towards the Portrait Hole.

"Hey James. Have they been like that all week?"

"Pretty much," James grinned, happy to see that Lily had finally come out of her seclusion.

"Huh, what have those House Elves been feeding them?" Lily stared to the Portrait Hole for another second before shaking her head, "Anyways, James, can I talk to you?"

"Sure," James stood up quickly and noticed that she had her jacket on. "Are we going to the grounds?"

Lily shrugged, "A walk might be nice."

"Hold on a second then," James ran up to his dormitory and grabbed his jacket, hat, and gloves out of his trunk before heading back down to the Common Room. "See you later, Moony."

"Hmm? Oh, hello Lily," Remus looked up from his book. "Are you two going somewhere?"

"Em is in the library, Remus," Lily laughed. "What are you reading?"

"Frankenstein by Mary Shelley," Remus replied. "I'm trying to read the classics."

"Good choice."

"Well, I'm off to the library to find Em then," Remus stood up. "Have a nice whatever it is you're doing."

"Bye Remus," Lily laughed again as the werewolf made his way out of the Common Room and to the library.

"Didn't even notice that you had come down," James shook his head. "I don't see how a book can be so absorbing."

"Depends on the book." Lily shrugged.

"I like Quidditch Books."

"I know you do. You've had _Quidditch Through the_ _Ages_ every single time I've tried to check it out."

James grinned sheepishly, "Sorry."

"I blame you for any lack of enthusiasm I may have toward the sport."

"I would have given it to you if you had asked."

"As true as that is, I'm pretty sure I tried to refrain from talking to you more than was absolutely necessary," Lily pointed out.

"That's true."

"But anyways, we both know that we're not on this walk to discuss my lack of enthusiasm towards Quidditch."

James didn't reply, just looked toward her expectantly.

"Look, James, I'm sorry. I really am. The kiss was amazing. I'm not going to lie. It was the best kiss I've ever had. But then, I panicked. I wasn't ready. I'm still not ready for that much."

"So where does that leave things?" James asked, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"I don't know, James. I want to be with you, more than anything. But I'm just not ready. And until I'm ready, it's not going to work out."

"So we're exactly as we were before? Friends with a hint of something more?"

"Can you do that? Can we do that?" Lily turned her emerald eyes to meet James' hazel ones.

"It's a hell of a lot better than you hating me," James laughed.

"I concur," Lily joined in the laughter.

When they had stopped laughing James looked to Lily. "Want to keep walking?"

Lily shrugged, "Why not?"

As they walked off through the grounds of Hogwarts, their playful banter could be heard floating across the snow.

"Concur?" James teased.

"Yeah, you know, agree," Lily explained.

"I know what it means. I just can't believe you said concur."

"It's one of those smart words; makes you sound intellectual, unless you say it like a redneck American."

"Listen to her. She speaks the truth," James dodged Lily's smack and the pair wandered off into the snow laughing and talking.

* * *

**Christmas Eve: Sirius and Marlene**

"Sirius, I told you that Santa Claus doesn't exist. He isn't going to write you back," Marlene sighed. She had been trying to persuade her boyfriend to leave the owlry for two hours now.

"Marlene," Sirius whined. "If he doesn't write back, then we can't celebrate Christmas today!"

"The jolly old fat man isn't going to care if we celebrate Christmas a day early. And even if he did, I'm sure we could leave him extra cookies and he would forgive us."

"Marlene, you are a genius!" Sirius grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the owlry and all the way to the kitchens.

"How cans wes help you, Mr. Sirius?" A house elf asked.

"We need a ton of cookies! STAT!" Sirius exclaimed, waving his arms around like the maniac that he was.

The house elves scurried around the kitchen, getting together a huge basket of cookies for Sirius. It took twelve of them to carry it over to him.

"Here yous goes, Mr. Sirius." The house elves dropped the basket at his feet with a huge echoing thump that made the floor of the Great Hall above shake.

"Thanks," Sirius grabbed the handle of the basket and attempted to pick it up, but he couldn't make it budge.

"Sirius, how about we—" Marlene started.

"I have it!" Sirius insisted, giving another heave on the handle and still not managing to budge it an inch.

"Sirius?"

"I was just warming up," Sirius clapped his hands and rubbed them together. Then, he grabbed hold of the basket handle with both hands and pulled, as hard as he could.

"Sirius! Your face is turning purple, you great idiot!"

"Almost got it," Sirius grunted.

Marlene sighed, pulled out her wand and pointed it at the basket, "Wingardium Leviosa."

Instantly the basket began to float, Sirius still hanging onto it and swinging wildly below it. Marlene shook the basket causing Sirius to fall onto the floor in a heap. He quickly sprang up and shook his head to get the dust out of it.

"Good thinking, Marlene," Sirius nodded. "If you get tired let me know and I will take over."

"Thanks, Sirius, but I think I'm good," Marlene laughed. "And you have cookie crumbs in your hair."

"AHH!" Sirius squealed and started running in circles, "Get them out! Get them OUT!!!!"

"I would get them out if you would stop running, you big baby," Marlene shook her head. "Sirius Black, don't make me knock you out with this basket of cookies."

Sirius immediately stopped running, "NO! Those are SANTA'S cookies!"

"And I will use Santa's cookies to knock you out if needed be," Marlene threatened, making the basket swoop dangerously close to Sirius' head to prove her point.

Sirius stood stalk still and spoke out of the corner of his mouth, "No need to knock me out. I'm standing still now."

"Good," Marlene transferred her wand to her mouth and brushed the cookie crumbs out of Sirius' hair. Then she gave him a quick kiss. "Now, where do you wish to leave these cookies for Santa?"

Sirius looked thoughtful for a second. "Better leave them in the Common Room, just to be safe."

"Sirius, the rest of the house will eat them if you leave them in the Common Room."

"I'll leave a note. Nobody would be stupid enough to eat Santa's cookies."

Marlene shook her head as Sirius started off determinedly. "You just keep telling yourself that and maybe it will come true for you one day."

Sirius ignored her and kept walking. When they reached the Common Room, Sirius pointed at the table in front of the fireplace. Marlene rolled her eyes and set them down.

Then Sirius turned to the nearly empty Common Room and bellowed. "Oy! Do any of you lot have a quill and some parchment?"

A group of fifth year girls scrambled for their bags each hoping to be the first to give him what he had asked for. Two of them, Rebecca and Rachel, found the required items at the same time and started the mad dash towards Sirius across the Common Room. Rebecca grabbed hold of Rachel's robes and threw her into a couch, but Rachel grabbed hold of Rebecca as she fell into some poor unsuspecting first years and both fell into a tangle of spare quills, parchment, arms, and legs.

The third fifth year girl looked calmly at the boys that had been sitting with them and shrugged. "I've got some, Sirius."

"Thanks. Vanessa, right?"

"Yeah."

Sirius smiled and nodded at her before turning and scribbling a hasty note on the parchment. It read, "Nobody touch Santa's cookies or Sirius will have to touch you!"

Smiling at his note he handed the quill back to Vanessa. "Thanks again."

"No problem," Vanessa put her quill away as Rachel and Rebecca sat down and scowled at her.

Sirius set the note on top of the cookies and it immediately slid off. He picked it up, licked it and stuck it back in place. It sat there for a second before sliding immediately back off again.

"Marleeene!" Sirius whined. "Make it stay."

Marlene raised an eyebrow, "Are you or are you not a wizard?"

"Uh. Oh yeah!"

Sirius picked up the piece of parchment and glared at it. Pointing a finger at it, he said, "Don't you come back off those cookies or I will set you on fire with my wand."

"Si, I meant that you could stick it to the"

Sirius turned and smirked at her as the paper stuck to the basket of cookies and didn't budge. "You were saying?"

"You are impossible," Marlene laughed.

"I know. Now, it is time for Christmas!"

Marlene smiled as Sirius grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the Common Room, past Lily and James who were holding hands and talking quietly as they walked down the hallway and. Wait? Lily and James?

"Hold that thought. Christmas can wait!" Sirius exclaimed loudly, whirling around and retracing his steps.

"Did you see Lily and James?" Marlene asked, jogging slightly to keep up with Sirius.

"Yeah and I want to know what is going on. Now, where did they go?"

Sirius and Marlene turned the corner, only to run directly into Lily and James who were on their way back inside after their walk.

"AHA!" Sirius bellowed, pointing his finger accusingly. "I know exactly what this is!"

"It's not what you think, Padfoot," James started.

"You two are holding hands!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Oh, then it is exactly what you think," James amended.

"Okay, let's go have Christmas now," Sirius turned to Marlene. "They were holding hands."

Lily looked at James who shrugged. "He was your friend first."

"Sirius, I don't think the thing to focus on is the holding hands. Don't you want to know what is going on?" Marlene sighed.

"You're right," Sirius narrowed his eyes, "Lily has a cookie in her pocket. That is far more important."

"I do not!" Lily exclaimed.

"Yes, you do. I can smell it," Sirius took a big sniff of the air. "It's chocolate chip. Give me the cookie."

"Sirius, Lily is not giving you her cookie," James stepped half in front of Lily so that he was between her and his cookie crazed best friend.

"Give me the cookie, Evans!" Sirius's eyes grew big and he looked ready to jump on top of both Lily and James to get the cookie.

"Sirius!" Marlene exclaimed. "You cannot just take Lily's cookie!"

"Oh."

"Besides, it doesn't matter that Lily has a cookie."

"Of course it does! It is a cookie!"

"No, what matters is the reason that James and Lily were holding hands."

Sirius looked like something had just dawned on him. "Holding hands, reason. Oh! Oho! You two are dating and you didn't tell me! I hope you feel bad, so bad that you give me your cookie to make me feel better."

"We aren't dating," James said. "And Lily isn't giving you her cookie."

"Well, if you aren't dating, then why were you holding hands?" Sirius asked, giving the two a suspicious look.

"My hand was cold," Lily replied.

"Oh. Okay then. See Marlene, her hand was cold. Let's go have Christmas now!"

"Sirius! Her hand was cold?" Marlene eyed the two suspiciously.

"Oh, yeah, right," Sirius nodded. "I've got this covered, Marlene."

Sirius pulled off his glove and handed it to Lily, "Here you go, Lily-rose. Can I have your cookie now?"

Marlene smacked him in the back of the head. "You are so stupid, Sirius. Maybe he doesn't understand, but I want to know what is going on here!"

"Uh, well you see. Er"

"What James is trying to say is that"

"We're not together," James finished.

"Not together? But you are holding hands?" Marlene narrowed her eyes. "I don't know if I believe you."

"I'm not ready, alright?" Lily sighed. "We're not official and we aren't dating until I'm fully ready. For now we're just friends."

"Ah, right, because friends hold hands all the time," Marlene replied sarcastically.

"No, they don't," Sirius blinked confusedly. "Do they?"

The other three ignored Sirius.

James gave Marlene a warning look, "We're just friends, Marlene."

"Oookaaay." Marlene looked at them skeptically, "Come on Sirius. Let's go have Christmas."

The couple started down the hall in the direction they had originally been going.

Sirius' eyes got really big. "Whatcha get me?!?!"

"Can't you wait like two seconds? I assume we'll be there in a minute and we can open presents first."

"Then can we eat?"

"Sirius, you are the one who planned this. I don't know. Can we eat then?"

Sirius thought for a second, "No, because I didn't get food."

"Sirius Black didn't get food?" Marlene could be heard gasping as the couple continued down the hall toward the Room of Requirement.

"Take a left," Sirius instructed.

"But the Room of Requirement is this way."

Sirius shrugged, "Pit stop. Harold is hungry."

"Sirius, who the bloody hell is Harold? And why does it matter if Harold is hungry?"

"Harold is my stomach," Sirius pouted. "He is hungry and the fastest way to the kitchens is to the left."

Marlene shook her head and muttered, "Harold? You named your stomach Harold? Honestly, why do I even date you? You are completely mental."

"Whatcha get me?!?!"

"Harold's hungry."

"Left it is then," Sirius grinned and pulled his girlfriend after him on the speediest path to the kitchen.

* * *

**_AN I am soooo proud of myself. I got this out and I have more that I'm working on right now, plus I finally got back in the groove of my other story KCP. Go team!_**

**_Now, I need some applause in the form of reviews. I promise I shall update again ASAP!_**

**_Love From,_**

**_MotherCrumpet_**


	27. Chapter 27: Barges

**_Here's the new chapter of Lily's List, my friends!_**

* * *

**6****th**** Year: New Year's Eve**

New Year's Eve morning, Lily simply couldn't sleep, there were far too many thoughts floating through her head. So instead, she sat in the Common Room window, watching the sunrise and singing softly to herself a song that her mum had taught her.

"Out of my window, looking in the night, I can see the barges flickering light. Silently flows the river to the sea and the barges too go silently. Barges, I would like to go with you, I would like to sail the ocean blue. Barges, have you treasures in your hold? Do you fight with pirates brave and bold?"

Lily heard someone come up behind her and she stopped singing abruptly.

"Don't stop, Lils," James said softly. "That's a pretty song and you sing it well."

"Mum taught it to Petunia and me," Lily made room for James on the wide window seat. "I would sing the first verse and Petunia would sing the second. We both sang the chorus. I can't bring myself to sing Petunia's verse."

Lily hugged her legs and rested her chin on her knee. She gazed at James who had sat down next to her with his legs stretched out. He looked out the window at the sunrise.

"What are you doing up?" Lily asked, looking away from his face and out at the sunrise as well.

James shrugged, "Couldn't sleep."

Lily realized it had been a full moon the night before. "How's Remus?"

"Dunno, haven't seen—"

Lily raised an eyebrow.

"He's worse than some, better than others. How did you know?"

"Prongs, Padfoot, Moony, and Wormtail aren't exactly the most common nicknames you know."

James sighed, "Alright. We're all unregistered animagi. I assume that you've figured out what animal each of us is?"

"Remus is a lycanthrope, obviously. Peter is a rat, I think, and I would guess that Sirius is a dog."

"Yeah."

"You have to be something with antlers, or that would be my guess. I mean, where else would you get 'Prongs'?"

"What's this? The brilliant Miss Evans is stumped?" James said in mock surprise.

Lily shrugged, "There are tons of animals with antlers, James. I don't know what you are."

"What would you guess?" James asked, looking directly into Lily's green eyes.

Lily thought for a second, "Well, knowing you, I would think that a stag would be the best guess. Just like Sirius is a dog because dogs represent fierce loyalty, you would be a stag because a stag represents pride, strength, and nobility. And, like a stag, you are always alert for danger."

"You've thought a lot about this," James laughed. "You called it. I'm a stag."

Lily shrugged. "I dunno that I've thought a lot about it. It's just, I knew you guys had a secret to do with Remus and when I figured out the main part of it, I knew there was a lot more. It was the only explanation that fit."

"And what, pray tell, would you be, Miss Evans?"

Lily thought for a second. "I was thinking a fox."

"Sly and cunning?" James asked skeptically.

"Clever, persistent, swift, diplomatic, adaptive, wise, courageous and intelligent," Lily explained. "I know a lot about animal symbolism."

"Apparently," James thought for a second, "But a fox seems to fit you. You know, I always thought that you would be angry to find out just how far we had gone to help Remus."

"I wasn't. I was very impressed that you pulled it off though and I worry every time there's a full moon."

"You're worried about us?" James asked, "Is that why you're sitting here?"

Lily shrugged, "Part of the reason. I was also thinking about my family since it's the holidays."

"How long have you known?" James asked.

"Since about two months after I think you accomplished it."

"And you were worried about us even though you didn't like us?"

"I never had a problem with Remus," Lily grinned. "But yeah, even though I wasn't too keen on you, I worried about you because even though I didn't like you very much, I never really stopped caring for you," She paused and then added with a grin. "Besides, the dangers involved with having one furry little problem at Hogwarts are bad enough."

James laughed. "You sure had a funny way of showing that you cared."

"Regardless of that, I've grown rather fond of you and your fellow miscreants and I wouldn't want any of you getting hurt now."

"We are Marauders, not miscreants, thank you very much," James pouted. "Miscreants has such a negative connotation."

"So does Marauders," Lily pointed out. "But you have no reservations about calling yourselves that."

James just shrugged in reply. "Look at the sunrise."

Lily turned and looked out the window. Then she gasped, "It's beautiful."

James opened his mouth to reply when Lily laid her head on his shoulder, then he shut his mouth, deciding instead to just enjoy the moment.

That night, the Gryffindor sixth years were gathered in the Great Hall at the big New Year's Party for the sixth and seventh years. All the fifth years were sitting up in their dorms sulking that they weren't yet old enough to be part of this tradition, and all of Gryffindor was sulking that the Marauders were old enough to attend the party, because this meant that they weren't holding their usual New Year's Eve Blowout in the Common Room.

"This isn't nearly as exciting as they always made it out to be," Marlene complained. "I thought the New Year's Party was something to look forward to."

"Well, it pretty much sucks," Sirius replied dully. "I say we should hit the kitchens and have our own party."

"I don't believe it, nobody spiked the punch!" Peter exclaimed as he walked up to the group. "What a party."

Lily sighed as everyone seemed to be looking to her, "What? Are you all waiting for my decision on if we can throw our own party or not?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Sirius shrugged.

Lily took a last look around the Great Hall. "Well, this party doesn't appear to have much hope of getting better so I say let's go have our own."

The group let out a cheer and James pulled Lily to her feet. The pair trailed slightly behind everyone else.

"I vote that we tell all the fifth years how splendid it was so that they're all excited to go next year," James declared.

"That's what happened to us last year, isn't it?" Lily asked. "And look how rotten that thing was. Horrid party."

"Nobody was dancing."

"That's because there wasn't any music. Just a bunch of food."

"The food was good." James pointed out.

Lily laughed, "That's about the only good thing we can say about that party."

Suddenly James' face looked serious, "Lily, this is going to be a Marauder party."

"I know."

"So the drinks'll most likely be spiked. And there will be dancing and I'm going to be the center of a lot of unwanted attention."

"I know, James," Lily smiled slightly at him. "I've seen Marauder Parties before, remember?"

"Yeah, but I just don't want to upset you. There's going to be some girls asking me to dance and"

"James, I know," Lily took his hand and laced their fingers together. "And there'll be guys asking me to dance as well. It's really not a big deal."

"Okay" James replied, reluctantly dropping the subject. He was worried. Lily wasn't usually one to encourage spiked drinks and dancing in the Common Room.

The pair entered the kitchens which were as devoid of activity as the party above them. Sirius was asking a lone house elf for the supplies they would need for their party and the others were sitting around a table idly. For it being New Year's Eve, no one really seemed to be in the holiday spirit.

"Oy," Lily called suddenly, dropping her hold on James' hand and placing both of her hands on her hips. "What is this nonsense?"

The others turned to look at her questioningly.

"You lot have never been the sort to let a poor excuse for a party get you down," Lily looked each of her friends in the eye. "I know I'm normally the one telling you not to have too much fun, but this is simply ridiculous! Sirius isn't doing something morally wrong or idiotic on New Year's Eve! Alice and Frank aren't stealing secretive kisses under the mistletoe when they think nobody is watching! I haven't come up with a slew of resolutions that I'll break the moment the New Year is chimed in! Tonight is a night for us to abandon all pretenses and let loose. What are we waiting for?"

Her friends let out cheers and immediately started grabbing supplies from House Elves. Lily felt a hand trail lightly down from her elbow and fingers lace together with hers. She looked up, her green eyes meeting James' hazel ones. James tugged her softly by the hand into the shadows and further away from the others.

"Are you okay Lily?" He asked quietly, reaching out his free hand to tuck a loose curl behind her ear. "You seem to be trying to force yourself to have a good time."

Tears welled up in Lily's eyes and her lip started to quiver slightly. "James," she whispered, "I'm afraid of a new year."

James wrapped his arms around Lily instinctively. "Whatever do you have to be afraid of, Lily?"

"What if–" Lily's voice broke. She took a ragged breath and whispered, terrified, "What if it happens again?"

James didn't have to ask. He knew she meant what if she was attacked again and he fought down anger that this could happen to her in order to properly assuage her fears.

"Oh Lils," James tightened his hold around her for a second, "I can promise you that I will do everything in my power to see that you are never, ever hurt again. I think that's the only thing I can do to help you, is to continue to watch out for you. But don't forget, never forget that I love you."

"Ja—"

"Shh." James shushed her, "Don't say anything, love. I know you aren't ready to tell me anything, but I wanted you to hear that I do love you. Especially since you are afraid to love me back."

Lily was trembling as she pulled back and opened her mouth to say something, but James placed a finger on her lips and pulled her back into his embrace, "Not until you're sure you're ready."

Lily relaxed slowly and she stopped trembling. When she finally pulled away from James again, there was no sign that she had ever been upset or afraid of anything in her entire life. "Let's see what we can carry for that party, shall we? I think I'm going to dump about half of the alcohol if I can get away with it. Sirius may be the one responsible, but he sure isn't the one who sits with the puking first years all night."

James grinned, "So it was you who helped poor Dennis Abbot puke into the toilet properly. Thanks Lils, that kept the bathroom a hell of a lot more pleasant."

Lily rolled her eyes, "First years oughtn't be getting drunk and puking all over the bathroom floor. They're eleven for Merlin's sake!"

"Some of them are twelve by now," James retorted, sticking his tongue out. Lily gave him a look and he grinned widely, knowing she was back to normal. "But yeah, I suppose puking first years is sort of frowned upon. I'll try to keep them from drinking too much, yeah?"

Lily grinned widely and took the alcohol from Sirius, "I'll carry that lot, it's lighter."

With a wink at James they headed out of the Kitchens, Lily stopping briefly to chuck a couple bottles of the alcohol into a suit of armor and shrinking a couple more that she stowed in her pockets. As she did so, she thought that, perhaps, when midnight rolled around, she wouldn't be completely adverse to giving the messy haired boy next to her a small peck on the cheek as a thank you.

* * *

**_AN/ I'm willing to discuss Deathly Hallows with anyone who wishes to! Oh and I've been having trouble finding new fanfics to read, so if any of you loyal readers and reviewers have any suggestions, just shoot the title to me in a review. I mostly read Lily/James, Draco/Hermione, Katie/Oliver, Alicia/George, Angelina/Fred, and Katie/Fred(or George). (I know, shocking right that I'm a fan of D/H, but I've read some simply amazingly well written ones and they've grown on me)_**

**_Please and thank you for reading and reviewing! You are absolutely spiffing!!! (dunno where I picked that up. It means, you are totally awesome and I love you all)_**

**_Love From,_**

**_MotherCrumpet_**

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	28. Chapter 28: Something Human

_Author's Note_

_Omigod. So... my life blew up, how 'bout you? There's been so much drama and I've been busy and I've got auditions to get ready for because we're doing 'High School Musical' for our spring musical._

_Okay, enough of my lame excuses. I really wanted to post this right away, so I didn't have my beta look at it. Just a little forewarning in case of grammar issues. _

_Sorry if you don't remember what's been going on... I'll give you a little refresher:_

_Lily Evans hated James Potter, almost as much as James Potter loved Lily Evans. The problem is, her friends think they'd be cute together. So, the first night of school, she writes a list of several things that James Potter would have to change in order for her to date him. Slowly, over th course of their first five years, things get checked off, but Lily keeps adding them, trying to keep him away. But after her relationship with Adam Becker goes terribly wrong and he tries to rape her, James is the only person besides her best friend Alice that Lily can turn to. Patiently getting on Lily's good side, everything was looking up for James, until she kissed him and he kissed her back. They agreed that they would take things as slowly as Lily needed to, and things are looking up again for James. However, we know that Hogwarts' dream couple don't get together until their seventh year. So what's keeping them apart until then?_

* * *

Sixth Year: Springtime

"Don't you find it odd that more people stay at school over Easter Break than do over Christmas?" Sirius asked randomly one day as the group sat in their normal spot in the Common Room.

"That has got to be the most random thing anyone has said all day." Marlene shook her head, "But it makes sense seeing as how Easter Break is only five days long."

"Speaking of Easter," James commented as he walked up to the group and took a seat beside Lily, "I just got a letter from Mum telling me that I have to go home for Easter because she's throwing one of her fancy parties. She says I can bring a couple friends along."

"How many is a couple?" Marlene asked.

James shrugged, "She wasn't specific. She was probably thinking the Marauders, but I doubt she'll argue if I bring a few more guests. In fact, I'm sure she'd be delighted that I expanded my horizons and made a couple of friends with decent behaviors."

"Marlene would be invited anyway, as would Sirius," Remus pointed out, "So it's not like it would even be a problem."

"So?" Lily asked. "Who's going?"

Marlene, Sirius, Remus, Dorcas, Emmeline, Alice and Frank all replied that they would be there. Peter replied that he'd have to ask his mother, but could probably come as she wished him to 'broaden his social horizons'.

"And what about you, Miss Evans?" James asked, tickling her side, "Will you grace us with your presence."

"I wouldn't dream of missing it, Mr. Potter." Lily replied with a smile. "But I shall need some help deciding what on earth I should wear."

"Don't worry Lily, I've got you covered." Marlene announced. "We'll go shopping at Hogsmeade tomorrow and pick you out something lovely."

"Sounds magnificent Marlene." Lily smiled at her friend in anticipation of the shopping day.

"Ooh, d'you mind if I tag along?" Alice asked, "I want to get something new to wear."

"Count me in as well." Emmeline smiled.

"I guess if we're all going, then I should come as well." Dorcas laughed, "I can't have you lot making me look shabby in last year's robes."

"Then it's a date." Lily laughed, "Girls' Day in Hogsmeade tomorrow."

"Aww, that's no fun." Sirius groaned, "What about us?"

"It gives you the perfect opportunity to visit Zonko's without me griping about every little thing you buy." Lily pointed out, "And then we'll meet you at the Three Broomsticks for lunch, yeah?"

"Sounds good." Sirius replied, perking up immediately, "And you can tell us at lunch what to go back and exchange for things that will actually work in our schemes like you normally do."

"I do no such thing." Lily huffed. "I do not promote your mischief making. I only tell you when something is going to backfire so that you don't get yourselves blown up like you nearly did with those fireworks last week."

"I rest my case." Sirius crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair.

"I still don't know where you got the idea that fireworks would make monkeys fly, or where you got a dozen monkeys for that matter." Lily muttered. James just patted her on the head with a laugh.

* * *

Sixth Year: Hogsmeade Shopping

"Now Lily, you need something spectacular if you're going to be James' date." Marlene commented as she browsed her way through dresses the next day.

"He didn't ask me to be his date." Lily protested quickly.

"Doesn't matter." Marlene laughed, "You're his date whether it's an official thing or not. Everyone will think you are, that's just the way you two are."

Lily turned slightly pink. "D'you think it'll matter that I'm Muggleborn?"

Marlene froze for a second, muttered, "More than spectacular," and left Alice and Dorcas to assure Lily that everything would be fine.

Lily furrowed her eyebrows and touched Marlene's shoulder, "Marlene, please answer me honestly, I need to be prepared."

Marlene sighed, "You will be under close watch all night. There will be some who will disapprove of you, there will be some who will be moved to tears with pride when they see you, but there shouldn't be any problems other than gossip. Nobody is dumb enough to make a scene at a Potter party."

Lily nodded, "Thank you, for telling me."

Marlene turned back to the dresses, "James will take care of you anyway, so there is absolutely nothing to worry about. Now try this one on."

Lily took the dress and tried it on. She walked out of the dressing room to see Marlene standing there holding another dress. Marlene shook her head and handed Lily the second dress. It took Lily trying on five more dresses before Marlene broke into a smile.

"That's the one Lily," She announced, "Take a look."

Lily peered into the mirror and grinned widely. The dress was strapless emerald velvet and hugged her curves effortlessly. It would need some hemming, but then it would just brush the floor with a slit to her knees up the middle of the back. Marlene topped it off by tossing Lily a pair of elbow length black satin gloves and a pair of black strappy heels. Alice added the final touch as she fastened a simple black satin choker around Lily's throat from which hung an emerald tear drop.

"Magnificent." Dorcas nodded.

Emmeline clapped her hands together, "Now, the rest of us need an outfit."

Lily peered in the mirror again, a huge smile on her face, whispering, "Wait until James sees me in this."

* * *

Sixth Year: Train Home for Easter

"OUCH!" James yelped, yanking his hand back and cradling it against his chest protectively. "What'd you hit me for?"

"I warned you not to look." Lily replied, "That's why. You'll just have to wait and see it at the party."

"Doesn't mean you have to hit me!" James pouted.

"Yes it does, you did something I told you not to do, so I punished you." Lily took his hand. "Oh, you are a big baby, it isn't even red."

"Not the point!" James protested. "And I am not a baby. I just don't see why I can't look at your dress."

"Because I want it to be a surprise. Did Sirius see Marlene's dress?"

"No."

"Did Frank see Alice's?"

"No, but-"

"No buts James, we decided together to keep you lot from seeing our dresses until the party."

"Speaking of the party…"

"No, James, you cannot see my dress."

"That's not what I was going to ask." James pouted. "I was going to ask you if you'd be my date, but if you're going to be so mean about it…"

"Well, if you aren't going to ask then I suppose that I can't say yes then. Oh what a shame. I was so looking forward to giving you a nice answer for once."

"Well, if you're going to be so nice about it... Lils, can you be my date for the party?"

Lily shrugged, "I guess that wouldn't make me want to gorge my eyes out with a fork."

"Was that a yes?" James asked, "Cause with the image your answer put into my head, I wasn't really sure."

"Yes James, it was a yes." Lily laughed. "I have a question."

"What's that?" James smiled.

"Why is it taking the others so long to get their food?"

James blinked, "Oh, right." Then he slid the door open and their friends all came tumbling into the compartment.

"You were right Moony," Sirius said weakly, "The doors aren't made of wood after all."

* * *

Sixth Year: Day of the Potter Easter Party

"Come one, Lily." Emmeline called into the redhead's room. "Everything will be fine."

"Did you see what the _Daily Prophet _had to say about Mugleborns being targeted?" Lily retorted, "I'm not going to this party."

"You just don't want to go because you're afraid of James." Marlene shouted through the closed door. "You're afraid that you'll fall in love with him and he'll hurt you."

"What the bloody hell does that have to do with going to a party?" Dorcas asked, but Alice and Marlene both hushed her.

"Shows what fat lot you know Marlene McKinnon. I'm already in love with him." Lily announced curtly, then, "Oh Merlin, did I actually just say that?"

"Pretty sure you did, Lils." Alice replied, grinning like a maniac.

"I'll send a formal retraction into the newspaper to be printed tomorrow." Lily moaned. "And that is not what this is about."

"Oh." Marlene said simply, "Oops, I could've sworn it was."

"No, I mean, his parents seemed nice enough, but what if they don't like me? And what if something does happen tonight. I know there'll be a bunch of Aurors here, but I'm going to upset a lot of people with my presence and the Aurors would only react to a situation. What if my being at this party gets someone hurt?"

"Lils, those are a bunch of 'what ifs'." Emmeline replied soothingly. "You can't live your life in fear of 'what ifs'. That's no way to live."

"I won't be able to live after the 'what ifs' become 'remember whens' either!" Lily exclaimed hysterically.

Dorcas threw her hands into the air, shooting Alice a look that clearly stated, 'she's your best friend, make her better'.

"Lil?" Alice asked tentatively.

"Oh, just go away!" Lily exclaimed.

Dorcas shook her head and left the room, Emmeline trailing behind her. Alice stood doubtfully beside the bathroom door.

Marlene shook her head, "It's time to send in the professionals."

Alice sighed and took Marlene's arm, "I remember when I _was_ the professional."

The pair walked out of the room in search of their host, James Potter.

James entered Lily's room two minutes later and knocked on the bathroom door.

"Alice, I swear to Merlin, I'm not changing my mind. Now go get ready for that blasted party." Lily bellowed.

"Lil, it's me." James called through the door. "Open the door."

"No." Lily replied. "I don't want to talk to you either."

"Lily, I swear to Merlin, either you open this door or I will open it for you."

"James, I'm not going."

"Lily Evans." James said warningly.

"Okay, okay, don't have a hissy fit; I'll open the bloody door."

The door swung open with a wave of Lily's wand to reveal the redhead dressed in a deep purple sweater and a pair of jeans, sitting with her arms around her knees and her chin resting on them.

"Happy now?" She asked, setting her wand down again.

"No," James replied, closing the door and sitting down next to her. "I'm not happy at all."

"I suppose you still want to see the dress." Lily muttered, "Figures, you're never satisfied. It's hanging over there."

"Lils, I don't care to see the bloody dress, that is, unless you're in it, downstairs, at my parents party."

"Oh, well, then I don't suppose you'll ever get to see it then."

"My parents are going to be so mad at me."

"Why, because you picked a mudblood loser who's too scared to show up at their party?"

James gaped at her, "What did you just call yourself? That's it, stand up right now. I meant because neither of us was going to this party, but we both bloody well are now."

"James, I'm not going." Lily insisted.

"Yes you bloody well are." James replied, pulling her up off the floor. He lifted her chin so that she was looking him straight in the eye. "Do you know how many people I've hit because they've used that term? It's such a filthy name and I never, ever, want to hear you call yourself that ever again. You may be a Muggleborn, but you are not a loser and you are not too scared to show up at a party, even one with the highest ranking ministry officials in attendance.

"My parents already think you're great because they can tell how much I care about you, and you could be a full blown muggle for all they care, once they get to know you, they'll be just as smitten with you as I am.

"Lily Evans, I love you. You may not remember it all the time, but do you honestly think I would ever let anything bad happen to you? No? Good, now I want you to promise me that you will never call yourself that again."

"I-I promise James." Lily replied shakily.

"I'm sorry if I scared you, Lils," James pulled her into a tight hug, kissing the top of her head, "I'm sorry, I yelled, but I couldn't let you call yourself that."

"No, i-it's just… James, I l-l… I l-l-lo"

"Oh thank Merlin!" Marlene cried as she burst through the door. "Please tell me you talked some sense into her."

Lily nodded, not able to tear her eyes away from James' face.

"Yeah, yeah, Marlene, could you go away for a sec? Lils was telling me something important." James waved the girl away, his eyes searching Lily's eyes desperately, wanting to read in them the rest of her sentence.

"Fine, but Lily is coming with me." Marlene seized the redhead by the arm, "Surely you can wait two hours to hear what she has to say. We have a party to get ready for."

"No, Marlene!" James called, but Marlene was off, Lily trailing after, looking back at James and giving him a little helpless wave goodbye. Once he was alone, James slammed the bathroom door shut. "Bloody Hell!"

* * *

Sixth Year: At the Easter Party

"Oh, look how many people there are!" Lily exclaimed nervously as the girls peered over the railing at the party below.

Emmeline gasped in awe, "Look at all the beautiful dresses!"

All five girls looked splendid in their own gowns, but each thought the other looked better. Alice's gown was a dark blue, with a sweetheart neckline and off the shoulder sleeves. The cinched look of the bodice created a slimming effect and the full skirt complimented her figure. Emmeline's dress was a crème colored silk, reminiscent of an older time. The train in the back had been buttoned up with tiny buttons so that it hung gracefully down the back creating a waterfall of luscious fabric. Marlene was wearing a sweetheart neckline strapless dress of deep purple that was more modern than the other girls' dresses. The skirt was straight with a cinched bodice. Dorcas wore a simple sea foam green colored dress with spaghetti straps and a medium sized skirt.

All of them were gorgeous, but Lily was glowing in a way that none of the others were. It wasn't that she looked any nicer than the others, but she held herself in a way that made her appear that she was gorgeous, made others know she was the belle of the ball. After her talk with James earlier, and almost getting to tell him that she loved him, Lily was more confident than ever and it showed. She was absolutely radiant, and everybody noticed as soon as she stepped into the party.

James was reduced to dumbness as he watched her walk over to him, and Remus had to nudge him in the back to restore him to animation. He took her hand and spun her around in a circle to get a good look at her. "You look abso-bloody-lutely gorgeous, Lils."

"Don't cuss at your party, James." Lily reprimanded, but she was beaming all the same.

"Lily-flower, you are simply glowing." Sirius observed, smiling broadly. "What did they do to you?"

Lily laughed, "James, I just want to thank your parents for inviting us. You don't think they're too busy?"

James grinned widely, "They're never too busy for me; it's been a Potter family rule for ages."

Lily took James' arm and the couple walked over to his parents, extending their greetings to a few other guests along the way.

"Lily is going to be just fine." Alice observed with a nod and a proud smile. "I knew it all along."

"Oh did you?" Marlene asked teasingly, "So that's why you were on her side about her not putting in an appearance."

Alice stuck out her tongue at her friend, "I knew that if I was on her side, she'd give in to coming."

"Mmmhmm," Dorcas laughed.

Alice made a face, "Come one Frank, let's leave this bunch of party poopers and go dance."

Frank laughed as his girlfriend dragged him towards the dance floor, waving goodbye over his shoulder as her went.

James' mother spotted her approaching son and his date over the Minister of Magic's shoulder. She made quick niceties with the Minister and his wife and then pulled her son into a hug. "Oh, James, don't you both look stunning. I can tell you picked a lovely girl," she whispered into his ear. Then she gave Lily a huge warm hug. "You look magnificent, Lily. I'm so glad you could come, nobody even comes close to you."

Lily turned a pleasant shade of pink. "Thank you for inviting me, Ms. Potter."

Mr. Potter threw an arm around his son, "She's the belle of the ball, James. What a beauty."

"She's smart too." James replied, grinning, just looking at Lily who was talking to his mother. "I've never met another girl like her."

Mr. Potter thumped his son on the back, "I doubt you ever will son."

James smiled at his father who winked back before giving him a slight push in Lily's direction. Mr. Potter wrapped an arm around his wife's waist, "We don't want to keep them from the party, do we Janet?"

"Oh, of course not Harold." Mrs. Potter replied, "You two have fun. And Lily dear, please keep James out of trouble?"

Lily smiled as James wrapped an arm around her and glared at his mom, "It's like you don't even trust your own son."

"Not really, no." Mrs. Potter called after them as the couple made their way into the next room. Then she turned to her husband, "He's growing up, bringing a girl home to meet us. Next thing we know, he'll be marrying her."

"I hope so." Mr. Potter replied, smiling at his wife, "She reminds me of you."

James, blissfully unaware of the fact that his mother was planning his future marriage to the girl he wasn't yet dating, prized the fact that Lily was dancing with him at the Potter Easter Party of her own free will. The idea that she didn't hate him was still quite a novel one, and he relished every moment that she didn't spend yelling at him.

"James?"

"Yes, Lily?" James asked, shaking his head a little to clear it. "Sorry, I think I zoned out there a little bit."

"Well, I know exactly what you need then," The redhead announced, dragging him off the dance floor and into the next room. She gestured to the buffet tables laden with scrumptious looking food. "Let's eat."

"Ah, a woman after my own heart." James sighed, gazing at all the food, "I vote we skip right to dessert."

"But it all looks so good." Lily protested, "I want to try all of it."

"No need. I'll tell you what everything tastes like." James pointed to the first dish, "It tastes like lemon chicken. That one is squid; I hear it's a muggle delicacy. There's some deviled dragon eggs, actually forget that whole 'only dessert' rule, you have to try that." James scooped an egg onto each of their plates and continued down the buffet, occasionally dishing samples of various dishes onto their plates.

When they reached the dessert table, Lily touched James' arm, "James, if we eat this first, then we'll have more room on our plates for dessert."

"Good thinking Lils!" James exclaimed, leading the way to an unoccupied table nearby. "I think we'll get along swimmingly."

"Mmhmm." Lily replied as she took a cautious bite of the deviled dragon eggs. "Ooh, those are good."

"It's all good, Lily-flower." Sirius laughed as he sat down next to James, "It's the Potter Easter Party."

Lily made a face at her handsome friend and took a bite of another dish, not wanting to fill up entirely on one thing.

"I see you two used the same strategy of eating dinner and then having a clean plate for dessert." Marlene observed as she slid into the chair next to Sirius.

"Lily's idea." James replied with a nod, "It was her idea to eat in the first place."

"A woman who likes to eat?" Sirius joked, "She's a real keeper James."

"Oh, believe me, I know." James smiled at Lily who swallowed her mouthful of something or other and smiled back.

"Because that's the only category that matters," Marlene commented sarcastically. "She could be a real witch, as long as she keeps eating her first priority."

"You forget, my dear, that you and Lily are both 'real witches' in the technical sense of the word." Sirius smirked.

"I would hit you, but I'm too busy eating."

"Dessert time!" James announced suddenly. "Are you ready Lils?"

Lily sighed, "As much as I think you really don't need the extra sugar… that cake looked like it would taste really good."

James practically dragged Lily back towards the buffet tables. Then he proceeded to dish a little bit of everything onto her plate and a lot bit of everything onto his own.

When he placed the final dish only on his own plate, Lily looked at him curiously, "Why don't I get any?"

He looked at her blankly, "You don't like coconut."

She laughed in reply and shook her head, "You, James Potter, know me far too well. And on top of that, you spoil me."

"You deserve it," He kissed her on the temple and then took her arm, the couple making their way back to the table where Sirius and Marlene quickly ceased their discussion of some topic.

"No, it's okay," Lily smirked, "You can keep talking about us."

Marlene looked slightly guilty, "Oh! We weren't-"

"Okay then!" Sirius exclaimed, "I swear I heard them say it."

"Heard who say what?" James asked.

"Sirius thinks he heard your parents say that it was obviously only a matter of time until the two of you got married." Marlene replied smoothly.

Lily choked on her cake and James ran his hand through his hair nervously, glancing sideways at Lily to see her reaction.

"What?" Lily wheezed.

"Mr. and Mrs. P said that-"

"Thank you Padfoot, we heard the first time." James cut his best friend off.

"I was just answering Lily-flower." Sirius protested.

James opened his mouth to reply, but Lily laid a hand on his knee to cut him off. "I heard Sirius, it was just a reaction," she explained diplomatically.

"Oh." Sirius nodded, "right."

"See, Irving!" A ministry employee's wife exclaimed loudly, pointing at Lily's hand that was still resting comfortably on James' left leg, "Janet and Harold are going to have grandkids in no time!"

Lily snatched her hand back and turned as red as the cherry pie on her plate. She picked up her fork and took a bite of cake to distract herself.

"His black hair with her green eyes!" An older witch was exclaiming to her friend at the next table. "Simply adorable."

"Indubitable." The witch's companion agreed.

"James!" Lily exclaimed in a panicked voice, burying her face in his shoulder.

James rubbed his date's back comfortingly, "I'm going to take Lily outside for a minute."

Sirius managed to nod between his snorts of laughter and Marlene waved from her half-collapsed position against his shoulder. James attempted a glare at them, but couldn't quite manage over his own large grin. He took Lily by the hand and led her through the kitchen and library to the reading balcony beyond.

"You think this is funny!" Lily accused, popping him in the stomach.

"A little, yeah." James replied honestly.

"Well… well, I don't." Lily huffed. "People trying to rush me."

"Nobody is trying to rush you, Lily," James assured soothingly.

She continued as if he hadn't spoken. "Predicting what our kids are going to look like."

It was James' turn to splutter, "Did you just say 'our kids are'?"

"I don't even know when I'm going to start dating you, let alone marry you!" Lily carried on. Then something registered, "W-what did you say?"

"You said 'what our kids are'!" James replied in a weak voice, "Implying that we are definitely going to have kids."

"I meant theoretically speaking." Lily was wide-eyed.

"Wait, what did you say after that?"

"I don't know." Lily lied, "I was rambling."

"No, you do know. You said that you didn't know when you were going to start dating me, let alone marry me."

"Oh… yeah."

"What if I don't want to marry you?" James asked suddenly, "I want to date you, but what if I don't want to get married?"

"Excuse me?" Lily looked at him as if he was crazy. "Why wouldn't you want to marry me?"

"I dunno." James shrugged, "Maybe you snore or something."

"You wouldn't marry me just because I snore?" Lily demanded.

The warning light went off in James' head, "Why are we talking about marriage and kids? We're only sixteen."

He winced as this was obviously the wrong thing to say.

"We've got to start sometime!" Lily bellowed. Something clicked in her head; it was much safer to yell at James than it was to be in love with him. "But if I snore and you wouldn't marry me, then I don't see the point of even dating you!"

"Lily." James started soothingly.

"No, I mean it James!" Lily's voice had dropped to a deadly whisper, causing James' heart to stop as the redhead stormed away from him back through the library.

"Lily!" James cried after her, "LILY!"

But the gorgeous redhead ignored him and stormed out of the room.

"Bloody Hell!" James swore loudly.

James leaned against the rail, muttering to himself and occasionally kicking the railing angrily. After a couple minutes James slumped against the railing dejectedly, through with being angry with Lily. When he heard someone come onto the balcony, he turned around quickly, thinking it was Lily, but it was just Sirius. He sighed and slumped into a chair.

"What happened mate?" Sirius asked, placing a hand on James' shoulder comfortingly. "You didn't try for those grandkiddies, did ya?"

James didn't even crack a grin. "I dunno what happened Padfoot. First she hits me because I think the whole thing is funny and the next minute she's rambling about the kids we're 'going to have' and marrying me. And I panicked and said maybe I wouldn't marry her because she snored or something, then tried to save my own skin by saying we should just drop the whole thing because we're only sixteen and she blew up!"

"Whoa, go back to that first thing you said." Sirius sputtered.

"I dunno what happened?"

"No, after that bit."

"She hit me?"

"The next bit."

"The kids we're 'going to have' and marriage?"

Sirius blinked, "Ah, so I did hear you right."

"Yeah."

Sirius was silent for a minute, "Prongs?"

"Yeah Padfoot?"

"You've been in love with this girl for years already. I don't think it's just a phase you're going through anymore."

"I realized that, thanks." James replied sarcastically.

"What I'm trying to say is… well, you panicked, yes, and you are only sixteen, but don't you think that maybe, just maybe, Lily is it for you? That maybe she's 'the one'?" Sirius held up a hand as James opened his mouth, "No, seriously Prongs, hear me out. When you think of ten years down the road, when there are mini-Prongs running around, who do you picture their mother being?"

James swallowed, "Lily."

"And did you ever think that maybe, just maybe, Lily-flower has fallen in love with you and you're the one that she pictures chasing after miniature terrors with? And maybe that's the reason why she freaked out, because she lets one little thing slip about her possibly wanting to spend the rest of her life with you, and you panicked. You, the one who has been reassuring her that she wasn't going to get hurt again, that she was safe as far as you were concerned, you were the one that panicked, thus ruining her vision of safety because you suddenly decided that forever was a long time to spend with one person."

James dropped his head into his hands, "What did I do Padfoot?"

"Something human," Sirius replied. "You did something human."

* * *

_Author's Note_

_Okay, yep, so that's the end of that chapter. Shocking right? You can all scream with excitment now... or anger because of the end there. Or if you're more the silent type..._

_ANYWAYS... moving on..._

_I learned something with my life blowing up, that I NEED to write. To quote Libba Bray "I'm one of those people who has to write. If I don't write, I feel itchy and depressed and cranky. So everybody's glad when I write and stop complaining already."_

_... in other words I, MOTHERCRUMPET, PROMISE TO UPDATE AGAIN ASAP. YOU CAN COUNT ON THIS BECAUSE I AM HALF CRAZY AND **HAVE** TO WRITE OR I'M THROWN OUT OF WACK!_

_Yeah, that's about it. Betcha you're looking forward to next chapter. I know what's going to happen! Do you?_

_Love From,_

_MotherCrumpet_


	29. Chapter 29: Rotten Timing

**_Author's Note._**

**_So, I don't own these characters, in case you didn't already know that. I'm not fabulous or even British, unfortunately._**

**_Oh, good story about that actually. My German exchange student friend came to my other friend's Un-birthday party (Christmas Party, only I kept trying to call it birthday party) and my boyfriend type person looks at me and goes, is she from England or something? And I was like, she's German. How can you not tell?_**

**_Anywho, that is neither here nor there. Here's the next chapter, I will seriously try to update again before the Holidays, but I really haven't slept in like a week, and I'm so stressed about all the stuff I have to get done. Which is what I'm going to go do now, soooo..._**

**ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!**

* * *

Sixth Year: Train After Easter

"How did she manage to avoid me since the party?" James asked in total amazement.

"It hasn't been that long," Remus replied soothingly.

"She was at my house!" James exclaimed.

"You do have a really big house, Prongs," Peter pointed out helpfully. James glared at him.

"Well, I'm going to go talk to her now," James stood up and Sirius pulled him back down.

"No, you aren't."

"Yes, I really am, Padfoot," James tried to stand up again, but Sirius yanked him back down.

"No, you really aren't, Prongs. That is, unless you really want to piss her off," Sirius shrugged, letting go of his best friend.

James remained sitting. "Maybe I should let her come to me," he said with a sigh.

"Why hasn't he talked to you yet?" Marlene exclaimed in the girls' compartment two over. "He's being a real jerk."

Lily sighed, "I was the one who overreacted. Maybe I should talk to him."

"No," Dorcas announced.

"Why not?" Lily asked.

"Because that's his job. You may have overreacted, but he's the one that made you overreact in the first place," Alice explained. "You can't go crawling back to him. Let him do the crawling."

"I wasn't going to crawl!" Lily crossed her arms. "I was just going to walk in and say 'Hey Potter, I heard you wanted to talk to me'. See, that leaves it open. He could just be like, 'Where'd you hear that, Evans? Cause it so wasn't true'. And that would be the end of that."

"You're still crawling. Fishing for his apology falls under the 'crawling' category," Alice replied.

"Says who?" Lily demanded.

"Says the _Handbook_ by Gloria Willstoncraft," Emmeline spoke up.

"Lily Evans does not crawl!" Lily announced resolutely, sitting back down. "Doesn't he care at all? Obviously I was wrong about him."

"The _Handbook_ also says not to overanalyze things until you hear the whole story," Emmeline added. "You should really read it, Lily. Alice is borrowing it from me right now, but I'm sure she'd let you look at it, especially under these circumstances."

"Absolutely," Alice nodded. "Things are just peachy with Frank right now. Which reminds me, I will be back later."

Lily raised an eyebrow as her best friend hurried out of the compartment.

"Wait a second, Alice!" Marlene called. "I've got to go to that thing as well."

Emmeline simply stood up and walked out with a wave. Lily looked at Dorcas, the sole other person in the compartment.

"Don't tell me she and Remus finally got together," Lily sighed. "Maybe all boys aren't dumb."

"Yeah, well, I've got to go and…" Dorcas shook her head. "Oh, sod it. I met this great Ravenclaw seventh year at the party and we've got a snogging date in compartment 4D."

"Well, at least you're honest about it," Lily muttered as she glared at the door that had just shut on the empty compartment. "Dumb James Potter."

"Dumb Lily Evans," James muttered as his compartment emptied out, Peter having to make an emergency trip to the loo because of something Sirius fed him. James had a feeling he was going to be there for a while.

James punched the seat angrily. Then he sighed. Why shouldn't he go talk to her? She was probably sitting two compartments over, sighing and moping about, waiting for him. Plus, he had nothing better to do than get yelled at by Lily Evans. At the very least it would give him the Lily-fix he was yearning for.

"Sod it all," James stood up, threw open the compartment door and found himself face to face with Lily.

"Oh, h-hello," Lily stammered, obviously unhinged by his sudden appearance. She took a breath and regained her composure almost instantly. "I heard you wanted to talk to me?"

James wondered who had told her that, "Erm, yeah. Yeah, I did actually."

Lily seemed to let out a breath he hadn't noticed she'd been holding. She looked at him expectantly.

"What?" He asked.

"Well, if you want to talk in the middle of the hallway, that's perfectly alright," Lily raised her eyebrows.

James felt his face heat up. It wasn't fair that she could be so calm when just seeing her made him flustered. "Oh, right. Sorry."

He stepped out of the way and let her into the compartment and then took a deep breath and closed the door. Then he turned to her, "Right. Well, I've never been terribly diplomatic, as I'm sure you're aware, but what the sodding hell happened at that party?"

Lily looked at him, and then simply burst out laughing. James eyed her cautiously; afraid it was some sort of hysterical reaction, but soon joined in when nothing sinister seemed to be occurring.

"I don't know, I was so scared about the whole thing, and then everyone saying how cute we were, and you finding it funny, and then I panicked…" Lily trailed off as James stepped closer. She was starting into his hazel eyes, and he was staring back into her emerald ones. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry," Lily whispered.

"I'm sorry too," James echoed softly.

It was at that moment that Lily had the sudden urge to grab James Potter and just snog him senseless. And nothing would have pleased the entire school more than if she had gotten the chance to do it, but right as she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him and he started to kiss her back, Peter Pettigrew returned from his emergency trip to the loo.

"Ah!" Peter cried as he stepped into the compartment, slapping his hand over his virgin eyes. "I'm terribly sorry! I thought this was my-- James? Lily? Did I miss something?"

"It's okay, Pete," Lily laughed, quickly gliding out of the compartment. "I'll see you both later."

"But she was-- And you were--" Peter stuttered. "You kissed!"

James was staring at the place where Lily had disappeared like a lost puppy. He shook himself lightly and pushed his friend playfully, "You have rotten timing, Wormtail."

* * *

Sixth Year: Exam Time

"I can't believe that blockhead hasn't asked you out yet," Dorcas said suddenly one day as the girls were studying for their end-of-year exams. "I mean really, it's been months."

Lily laughed and flipped a page in her Transfiguration book, "It's not like he's really gotten a chance to. Besides, I'm perfectly content as is. If I see something I like better, there aren't any messy break-ups I'd have to go through before I can snag them."

"Like there is anything you'd ever like better," Marlene grumbled. She had gotten into a fight with Sirius and they were both grouchy. None of their friends were concerned, since it had happened several times previously, which just made them even grouchier.

"Oh, just drag Sirius into a broom closet and snog him already," Dorcas threw a pillow at her friend. "That would save us all this moping about."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Marlene sniffed, though she had been thinking the same thing just ten minutes ago. Then she stood up, "But you've got me convinced that it'll work."

The other four Gryffindors watched her march out of the room with grins on their faces.

"Oh, thank Merlin," Alice flopped back onto her bed. "That gets more tiresome every time."

"So Al," Lily started, "how's Frank?"

Alice turned pink, "I'm trying to study my Transfiguration for McGonagall."

"I'm surprised he hasn't proposed yet," Dorcas stage whispered to Lily and Emmeline, who laughed. "I mean, I thought James Potter was smitten, but oh Merlin, he could take lessons from Frank Longbottom."

Alice seized her book, now looking even pinker than before, "I'll just go and study with Frank then."

Dorcas and Lily made kissing noises as Alice left the room and she stuck her tongue out at them.

"Good," Lily grinned. "Now with that over, on to the real business... Emmeline, given any thought to your one month with Remus?"

Emmeline blushed, "It's tomorrow night. He said he's going to surprise me. I'm so excited."

"Aww, that's cute," Dorcas flipped to another page in her Transfiguration book. "My one month is coming up as well. Lily, I know you helped Remus come up with his plan for Em, care to drop hints for Tommy?"

Lily laughed, "I think you'll be pleasantly surprised, Dorcas, but that's all I can say on the matter or both of them will have my head."

"Want us to drop some hints for that Potter boy?" Dorcas asked. "Or maybe we should just drop him on his head."

"No," Lily replied absently. "I know James Potter, and I'm sure he has a plan. Speaking of which, I hope he's in the Common Room. Transfiguration is just not my subject."

"Hold on a second and we'll come too," Dorcas said, standing up and gathering her stuff. "I'm supposed to meet Tommy and I know Em is itching to discuss something with Remus."

"How did you know that?" Emmeline asked in a surprised manner as she gathered her things.

"She knows because you chew on your lip when you're thinking of something that you want to talk through," Lily explained, shouldering her own bag and slipping her Transfiguration book inside. "You've been chewing away all afternoon."

"Really?" Emmeline thought for a second. "I guess I do."

"You do," Dorcas assured her as the three glanced around their room to make sure they hadn't left anything necessary. "Got everything?"

The other two nodded and the three headed down to the Common Room, Dorcas waving goodbye and heading out the picture hole. Lily and Emmeline headed over to where James was sitting in the window seat looking at his Transfiguration book.

"Hey," Lily dropped her bag and joined him in the window seat, giving him a peck on the lips. "Mind if I join you?"

"Hey gorgeous, of course not," James replied, lowering his book. "Hey Emmeline, how are you?"

"I'm good," Emmeline replied. "How about you?"

"I'll be better once exams are over. Oh, and Moony is in the library helping Peter for exams."

"How did you know I was looking for Remus?"

"You do this thing when you're thinking about something you want to discuss…" James shrugged. "That's how I knew."

Emmeline adjusted her bag with a laugh, "Everybody has noticed it but me. I wonder if Remus knows."

"He thinks it's drop dead attractive," James informed her with a grin.

"Yeah, okay then," Emmeline rolled her eyes. "Thanks, James. See you later, Lily."

"Bye, Em." The couple chorused as she made her way to the Portrait Hole.

"So, what'd you need?" James asked, turning to the redhead.

"Well, you see, I don't understand Transfiguration so well all the time…"

"And you needed my help," James finished.

"Eh, well, I…" Lily started, but James gave her a look. "Ok, fine, that's exactly right."

"Okay."

"Okay, just like that? No 'only after you say I'm the best at Transfiguration ever'? To be honest, I'm a tad disappointed."

"You can say it again if you want," James shrugged. "But I've got Charms to learn as well."

Lily shook her head and ignored the slightly nagging feeling that something wasn't quite right. "I'll help you with that."

"It's alright, I asked Tommy's twin sister to help me," James replied. "Now, what do you need help with?"

Lily hurriedly bent down and picked up her Transfiguration book to hide her face. What was that feeling? Jealousy? She, Lily Evans, was jealous because James Potter had asked another girl to help him with Charms. A gorgeous, smart, Ravenclaw seventh year who happened to be Head Girl. Lily tugged her book a little harder than absolutely necessary and it flew out of her bag and bopped her in the nose.

"Ouff!" Lily groaned, trying to still the flow of blood from her nose. "Thab hurb!"

James pulled out his wand and waved it, causing the bleeding to stop. He gently tilted Lily's head and examined her nose. "Good as new," he announced, reaching instead for her textbook. He waved his wand again and the blood was instantly wiped off.

"Thanks," Lily said quietly, taking her book back. The James Potter she was used to, the one who had taken her sudden kissing of him on the train back at Easter as a sign that she was over her aversion to kissing and that he could now, and frequently did, kiss her whenever he wanted to, had passed up the perfect opportunity to kiss her. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she flipped through the textbook to the very last chapter, "Here it is."

James took the book from her and looked at the place where she was pointing. "Ah, partial Transfiguration of people," James looked at Lily, "but you we're getting it in class."

"I know," Lily sighed, "but it doesn't seem to make sense anymore now that I'm outside of class."

"You just have to look at it the right way," James replied, and began to explain partial human Transfiguration to Lily carefully, in a way he knew she would understand. It wasn't long before she could explain it flawlessly back to him.

"Are you sure you don't want help with Charms?" Lily asked, sliding her book back into her bag.

"Mmhmm, thanks for asking though," James replied, giving her a quick peck on the temple.

"What time are you supposed to meet Tina?" Lily asked, leafing through some papers in her bag to find a Transfiguration essay she wanted to read over again.

James glanced at his watch, "Right now." He slid off the window seat and shouldered his bag. Then he grinned at Lily, "See you at dinner, then."

"Yeah," Lily replied with a strained smile, but James didn't seem to notice as he turned and walked out of the Common Room. Suddenly, Lily felt as if she had a strong headache and she rubbed her temples lightly. Putting the essay that she had just located back in her bag she picked it up and headed up to her dorm dejectedly.

"I'm not going to dinner," Lily informed Alice, who had just gotten back from studying with Frank. "I don't feel well at all."

Alice felt her friend's forehead in a concerned manner, "Do you want me to bring you anything?"

Lily shook her head and then had a second thought. "Mmm, I am craving chocolate. Would it be terribly difficult for you to get me some from the kitchens?"

Alice climbed onto Lily's bed and shut the curtains so that Dorcas, who had just walked into the room, wouldn't hear their conversation. "Okay, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. I just want some chocolate."

"It isn't that time of the month, because that was last week."

"Alice, nothing is wrong."

"Seriously Lily, you can tell me."

"Fine, if you're going to interrogate me about why I want it, I'll get the bloody chocolate myself!" Lily snapped, rolling onto her side.

"Mmmhmm, that's what I thought. Something is wrong with James."

"Nothing is wrong with me and James bloody Potter!" Lily bellowed. "I mean, it's not like I'm busy or anything, and I know Charms, but I don't care that he asked Tina perfect-Head-Girl-smarty-pants Ryder to help him instead of me. And I definitely don't care that he's been acting odd for the past couple days."

"He asked Tina Ryder to help him with Charms?" Alice furrowed her eyebrows. "That doesn't make any sense."

"No, it bloody well doesn't," Lily muttered.

The pair was silent for a moment before Lily sat back up, a path of tears running down her face. "Alice, would you get me that chocolate?"

"Oh Lily!" Alice hugged her friend. "Of course I will."

Emmeline Vance stopped talking mid-sentence, causing Remus to stare at her in a concerned manner.

"Is everything alright?" He asked.

Emmeline shook her head to clear it, "Yeah. Yeah, everything's fine."

"You stopped mid-sentence."

"I lost my train of thought, sorry. What were we talking about again?"

"Are you sure you're alright?" Remus asked. "You look kind of confused."

"I'm fine, I was just wondering what James was doing sitting that closely to Tina Ryder." Emmeline pointed at a table just past Remus' left ear.

He turned, made a noise, and immediately turned back. "That's certainly not Lily he's letting sit practically in his lap. Keep watching them, but not obviously."

"What's going on?" Peter asked, coming back from the loo and sliding into the seat next to Emmeline.

Emmeline pointed to the table again. "How am I supposed to be discreet about spying?"

"Just, make it look like you're talking to me," Remus responded hurriedly. "What's going on now?"

"Oh my," Emmeline covered her mouth with her hands.

"That isn't Lily," Peter murmured in a kind of horror as he watched the scene.

"For Merlin's sake, what is it?" Remus demanded.

"He put his arm around her chair," Emmeline whispered in a horrified manner. "I can't believe this. How am I going to tell Lily?"

"What kind of 'arm around her' thing? A 'we're friends' kind of thing? Or more of an 'I just want to touch you' kind of thing?"

"I'd have to go with the 'I just want to touch you' one there." Peter replied sadly.

"Oh, I wish we could hear what they were saying!" Emmeline wailed.

"That's it!" Remus whispered urgently. "Wormtail, go 'look' at the books on that shelf right behind them and find out what they're saying."

"But that's eavesdropping," Peter pointed out.

"So?"

"Okay then, I have no problem with it. I was just making sure that you were aware," Peter rolled out of his seat and onto the floor before crawling rapidly towards the bookshelf.

Emmeline buried her head in her arms and wailed, "Why, oh why does the bad stuff always happen to Lily?"

"Maybe it's nothing," Remus patted her on the arm, taking another quick glance across the library. "I hope to Merlin it's nothing."

"Hiya Moony, how's it going?" Sirius asked loudly, suddenly popping up next to Remus's right elbow.

"Ahhh!" Remus exclaimed.

"Shhh!" Emmeline hissed. "He'll hear you and then he'll see Peter!"

"Whatcha talking about?" Sirius asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

Emmeline pointed discreetly. Sirius sank into the seat beside her, his eyes gaping. Remus nodded weakly.

"Please tell me you sent Wormtail to spy," Sirius muttered.

"Naturally," Remus replied.

"Surprisingly enough, Peter is the best spy out of the three of us," Sirius observed. "Which doesn't make much sense seeing as he's the clumsiest."

"You get distracted too easily, I don't like the deception, and Prongs isn't patient enough," Remus mused. "Somehow though, the lack of all three qualities mentioned adds up to the ideal spy."

Emmeline shrugged and then exclaimed, "They're leaving!"

Peter slid into the empty seat next to Remus and the other three turned and look at him expectantly.

"She was helping him with Charms. She definitely has a thing for him, and they have a rendezvous set for eight-thirty in that secret passage behind the tapestry of St. John the Muggleborn," Peter whispered.

Remus's eyes bugged out slightly, "What are we going to do?"

"We're going to not tell Lily-flower, that's what!" Sirius exclaimed. "Well, at least not until we know what's going on. I'll follow them with the invisibility cloak tonight."

"You aren't the best spy, Sirius," Remus observed.

Sirius stuck his tongue out, "Fine. Peter can follow them."

Peter nodded eagerly, "I always wanted to be a spy."

"Oh no!" Remus moaned.

"Oh yes I did," Peter gave him an odd look. "What's so wrong about that?"

"I think it's absolutely spiffing that you wanted to be a spy. I was merely remembering the fact that Lily and I are supposed to patrol tonight."

"Oh no!" Emmeline exclaimed. "What time?"

"After dinner until ten," Remus groaned. "And Lily always checks that secret passage at least twice."

"Well, I'll just have to arrange for some commotion on the other side of the school then, won't I?" Sirius grinned deviously. "See you lot later, I'd best get hopping."

"I wonder if that's a clue," Emmeline observed as she watched her conniving friend leave the library.

Remus rubbed his temples, "I don't even want to think about it. C'mon, let's go to dinner."

James looked up at Alice curiously as she sat down next to Frank at dinner that night, "Have you seen Lily? Nobody else has."

Alice gave him a look. "She's sick."

"What kind of sick?" James asked.

"Headache," Alice replied shortly, before mumbling to herself. "More like heartache."

James furrowed his eyebrows with concern and grabbed another roll, "I'll just go check on her. Did she want anything?"

"Well, if you insist on going, you ought to bring her some chocolate. She said she was craving it."

James nodded and stood up, "See you lot later then."

"He's going to check on her," Emmeline whispered to Remus hopefully. "Maybe that's a good sign."

Remus sighed, "Let's hope."

Marlene looked at Alice suspiciously. "So, what's really wrong with Lily?"

"I'll give you three guesses," Alice stabbed her piece of chicken pot pie a little too enthusiastically. "James asked Tina Ryder to teach him Charms and he's been giving her the brush off."

"He has seemed a little less 'enthusiastic' regarding her," Dorcas made a face. "I thought the boy was just stressed about exams or something."

Emmeline suddenly got an idea, "Dorcas, you're dating Tina's brother Tommy. So go over and sit with them. Fish for some information."

"Why are you so suspicious, Em?" Dorcas asked. "You aren't one to encourage possible drama until you've seen some evidence of it."

"We saw their study session this afternoon, Remus, Peter, Sirius, and I," Em explained. "I want to know what Tina Ryder thinks is going on."

Dorcas swore, knowing that if Emmeline was concerned, something was probably seriously wrong. She stood up and made her way over to the Ravenclaw table. Sirius came up and took her empty seat.

"So, I've set the plan in motion," He announced, forgetting that only three of the table's occupants knew what he was talking about.

"Sirius, whatever you're talking about can wait," Marlene placed her hand on his leg. "We're trying to figure out what Lily and James's deal is."

"You're in on it too?" Sirius asked incredulously. "Wormtail isn't going to be very stealthy with you lot in tow."

Remus hit Sirius in the arm. "We hadn't told them that part yet!"

"I wasn't planning on it!" Emmeline hit him as well. "At least not until we know what's going on ourselves!"

"Ow, hitting is not necessary!" Sirius exclaimed. "And now that you've hit me, you're going to have to explain. If you hadn't hit me, they would have just written it off as more of my ramblings."

"This is true," Marlene observed with a nod. "But wait to explain until Dorcas comes back."

The group waited patiently for another ten minutes while Dorcas remained at the Ravenclaw table, then they waited on bated breath as she walked back and slid into James's unoccupied seat.

"So?" They chorused eagerly.

"She thinks he's hot. He asked her to tutor him, she agreed eagerly. She says to tell Lily she hopes she feels better and mentioned that she needed to change before her meeting with James tonight," Dorcas turned to Emmeline. "What exactly happened in the library?"

Emmeline, Remus, and Peter relayed the story with occasional interruptions from Sirius. The other four hung on their every word, Alice slamming her fork down angrily when they had finished.

"We spent years trying to get her to date him and now she falls in love with him, he knows it and he decides that it's a lovely time to move on. I don't know about you lot, but once I find out for sure what's going on, I'm going to go beat some sense into that boy!" Alice fumed. Frank tried to calm her down, but he looked irritated as well.

"Nobody say anything until we find out what's going on. Everyone meet in the Common Room at ten-thirty after our patrol and we'll discuss our course of action," Remus directed. "Wormtail, you follow them until James comes back, alright?"

Peter saluted, "Yessir!"

"Padfoot, I hope you have that distraction ready." Remus muttered to his friend as the disgruntled group headed out of the Great Hall.

Sirius grinned maniacally. "The question is, are you ready for it?"

Lily opened her eyes and sat up as she heard the door to her dorm open, "Alice? You sure ate dinner quickly. Did you get my chocolate?"

"I'm not Alice, but I do have your chocolate," James replied, sitting on the bed next to Lily. "How are you feeling?"

"I have a headache and I want to sleep."

James unwrapped a bar of chocolate and handed it to Lily, "This'll make it better."

Lily took the chocolate from him, "Thanks."

James snatched his hand away, "Uh uh, I don't think so. You aren't getting this that easily."

"Please, James. I just want to eat the chocolate and go to sleep," Lily rubbed her eyes with the palms of her hands.

"Why are you mad at me?" He asked. "And don't even try to deny it."

Lily glared at him and flopped over on her side.

"Well then, two can play at that game," James nodded, set the chocolate on the table and picked Lily up off the bed, tossing her over his shoulder.

"James! Put me down!" Lily squealed, pounding him on the back with her fists.

"Nope. We're going to go have a nice little chat about what is bothering you and I know you won't come with me unless I force you to."

Lily continued to pound on his back until James finally set her down on a couch in the Room of Requirement. Then she crossed her legs and arms and gave him a dirty look, "What was the point of that?"

"To get you alone," James shrugged, completely unfazed by her glare and tone. "Now would you please tell me what's eating away at you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, but I have a patrol to start on," Lily replied smoothly, starting to stand up.

James sighed, "If you make me guess instead of you just telling me, we're both going to feel dumb."

Lily shrugged, "That doesn't seem to matter. You've got Tina to make you smart again."

James furrowed his eyebrows, "Is that what this is about?"

"You tell me."

James swore. "It started off that I just needed a tutor that wouldn't distract me every time she said my name. Because when you were helping me with charms, my mind tended to drift to other moments spent with you. But then I asked her to help me with something else…"

James reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny teddy bear. With a wave of his wand it suddenly became huge and fluffy. James squeezed the paw of the bear and it began to talk. It said, "Lils, James loves you more than anything. Would you do him the honor of being his girlfriend?"

James tossed the bear at Lily and she caught it, setting off the speech again. The bear saying, "Lily-flower James thinks that you are absolutely amazing."

Lily gasped, "It changes!"

"I couldn't have done that by myself, so I asked Tina for help," James looked hurt. "But obviously I was wrong about you being ready for me to date you. So, as much as I hate to have to do it, I have to take back that question. You aren't ready to trust anyone yet."

"James!" Lily called after him as he walked out of the room. She sprinted after him, but as soon as she stepped out of the door, she was swept into a sea of tap-dancing bunnies in top hats.

"Hiya Lily!" Sirius exclaimed as McGonagall dragged him towards her office by the ear. "How d'you reckon these cute little bunnies got here?"

"Sirius Black, I'm going to kill you," Lily whispered hysterically as she pushed her way though the dozens of bunnies. "James! James, where are you?!"

Lily rounded the corner to find the hallway completely empty. James was nowhere to be seen. She clutched the teddy bear to her chest as tightly as possible and began to cry. The bear said, "Don't cry, Lil! James will never make you cry again, I promise. If he does I'll beat him up!" Instead of laughing, Lily simply began to cry even harder.

* * *

**_TADA!!! And if I don't get a chance to update again before then, Season's Greetings, have a good whatever holiday you celebrate!!_**

**_Any requests for upcoming mini plotlines? Review quickly and I may get to use some of your ideas!_**

**_Love From,_**

**_MotherCrumpet_**


	30. Chapter 30: His Redhead

**_Author's Note:_**

**_So, here's a kinda short chapter. I'm hoping to get several shorter chapters posted over my winter break. Hope you don't mind the more frequent updates. I would have had this one up like a week ago, but all my teachers decided to pile everything on for the last week. You know how they are._**

**_I have to do a project for Chemistry and read 1984 for English over the break, but I should still have a fair amount of time to write. Especially since my boyfriend type person thingie is in New Mexico so he can't distract me. I am going away for a week or so, but don't worry, I'm taking my laptop with me!_**

**_CHEERS!!!!! HAPPY READING! see you at the end! _**

* * *

"Look, James, I'm sure if you'd just talk to her…" Marlene coaxed over a late breakfast on the final day of exams.

James ignored her and grabbed a muffin, "I have last minute Charms to study."

Marlene sighed and turned to Sirius, "This is absolutely ridiculous."

"Tell me about it, the bacon isn't even crispy today!" Sirius exclaimed.

Marlene gave him a dirty look, "I was talking about Lily and James you moron."

"Oh, right." Sirius cowered, "That's ridiculous as well."

"Well aren't we going to do something?" Marlene prompted.

"No."

"What d'you mean 'no'? We're just going to sit here and watch them destroy their own happiness?"

"Well, if you're going to be so melodramatic about it…" Sirius took a bite of bacon, "Lily-flower just needs a little longer and then she'll talk to him."

"What if she doesn't?" Marlene questioned, "What then? She's been eating early, and he's been eating late, just so they can avoid each other. Other people are beginning to chat them up, thinking they're both free!"

Sirius grabbed the remainder of the bacon, kissing Marlene quickly as he stood up. "Don't worry about it. Everything will work out fine. Dumbledore will take care of it."

Marlene called after him, "You're theory that he controls all the tiny details of our lives is the dumbest thing I've ever heard Sirius! He's a headmaster, not a god!"

"Same difference!" Sirius disappeared with a wave.

* * *

It was always the same; Lily wandered distractedly around the library as she had done every morning since the teddy bear incident. She occasionally peered at a book, but her eyes weren't really reading. It was a good thing she had memorized all of her notes, or she would certainly have failed her exams as she had been on total autopilot.

"Oof, sorry." She muttered as she regained her balance, "I wasn't paying attention."

"S'alright."

Lily's gaze snapped up immediately as James Potter's voice replied. Her green eyes widened in alarm, she had only seen him when she watched his intense concentration during exams. Her hand began twirling her red hair nervously.

James reached out and stopped the action. "You don't want it to become a habit."

She snatched her hand back in alarm. He had touched her, like nothing had ever happened. She registered the hurt in his eyes when she yanked her hand free of his grip, her heart hurt to know she had caused that pain.

"It's a bad one." She replied shakily.

James shrugged, "There are worse ones." He turned as if to go, but Lily instinctively grabbed his arm.

"No, I-I need you. Don't go." Lily whispered.

James turned back, "No you don't. What good would I do? I'll just cause you more pain."

She wrapped her arms tightly around her middle, hugging herself as if to hold all of her parts together, "I hurt, a lot. I feel empty, like I'm falling apart. You make everything better."

James opened his arms in a surrendering manner. "Maybe I could stick around."

Lily threw herself into his arms and began to sob into his chest. He wrapped his arms around her tightly, kissing her softly on the top of the head. "We still have a lot to work out before we can get together, that is, if you want it to last."

Lily's thin arms snaked around his middle and she squeezed to say that she did want it to last, even if they had to talk for years.

Lily sat up, her green eyes snapping open. It had seemed so real this time. More so than ever before. She glanced at the clock, 1:00, the night of the full moon. She had avoided talking to James during the exams, now there was only a day left before they headed home on the Hogwarts Express. Lily wrapped herself in her dressing gown and slipped on a pair of slippers. She also grabbed her green and pink polka dotted blanket from her bed and headed down to the common room. Climbing into the window seat, she settled in to keep watch over the Marauders as she did every full moon, determined to dash out to help at a moment's notice.

* * *

"Moony's better than he usually is." Sirius commented offhandedly as the Marauders minus Remus neared Gryffindor Tower.

"I thought so too. That's a definite plus; he might be able to enjoy some of his last day at Hogwarts." James replied. His voice had developed a serious undertone that was prevalent even when he appeared the happiest.

"I'm glad the full moon started earlier," Peter commented, "We get nearly an hour of extra sleep now!"

"Not me, I've got to pack all of my stuff." James sighed, "There's nothing like waiting until the last minute."

"Just magic it in." Sirius shrugged.

"I can't get the hang of that sort of charm."

"Ask Li-"

James shot him a look and pushed in front of the others in order to give the fat lady the password. Then he scrambled through the portrait hole and stood up, freezing just on the other side.

"What Prongs?" Sirius asked, pushing his friend slightly in order to get into the room. "I've got the invisibility cloak, we didn't forget it again."

"Prongs, can you scoot a little?" Peter asked, "I can't fit."

James shook his head and strode quickly across the room.

"Oy!" Sirius exclaimed, seeing what had agitated his friend so badly, "Someone had best wake her up."

James froze again, whispering, "No, Padfoot, you have to do it."

Sirius shook his head, "Wormtail and I are off to bed. This is your department Prongs. Your redhead, your problem."

"She's not my redhead."

"Then why have both of you been so depressed you aren't any fun?" Peter asked, catching on to what was happening now that he had finally gotten into the room.

"She isn't my redhead." James repeated, unable to tear his eyes from Lily's sleeping form on the window seat. "Please Sirius."

Sirius put his hand on James' shoulder, "She is your redhead, the way you've always wanted her to be. She loves you as much as you love her."

"She doesn't trust me."

Peter gave James a sad look, "Do you blame her?"

Sirius nodded, "After what she's been through, it's amazing that she can love at all. C'mon Wormtail."

Sirius gave James' shoulder a quick squeeze before he and Peter headed upstairs to the boys dormitory. James gazed apprehensively at the sleeping redhead's form. He glanced at both stairways to be sure there wasn't another way out before steeling himself and striding across the common room in her direction.

"Lily?" James whispered, brushing loose strands of hair out of her face. "Lily, wake up."

Lily blinked her eyes open slowly and peered at James groggily, "James? Why aren't you with Remus?"

"It's over. Why aren't you in bed, Evans?" James instantly wished he hadn't used her last name as he saw her cringe, a wave of hurt passing over her face.

She looked away, "I always worry about Remus, Potter."

James adjusted his glasses, trying to hide the pang of turmoil that their conversation had given him. It was much like something from the old days, the days he had thought were long behind them.

"Well, I'm off to bed then." Lily announced awkwardly, inching around him, "Thanks for not leaving me Potter."

Although Lily simply meant to thank him for not just leaving her to sleep in the common room, James felt as if she were chastising him for doing what he had done, "He's lucky you know."

Lily turned around, her green eyes meeting his hazel ones in confusion, "Excuse me?"

"Moony, he's lucky to have a friend like you."

"I'm not the one who breaks the law at least once a month for him."

"You don't have to. He's lucky to be friends with someone as caring as you are. There aren't many people who would sit up half the night to make sure a werewolf is doing alright, most wouldn't even be friends with him."

"Yeah, well, it isn't just anyone who would risk Azkaban for their werewolf friend either. I do what I can, but it isn't much. And it isn't just Remus I worry about."

"Nothing's ever happened."

"There have been close calls, and I would feel responsible if someone was seriously hurt and I could have stopped it."

"So you're being selfish?" James asked.

"No." Lily countered, "I'm being cautious because I know that nothing is certain; I know what its like to get hurt."

"Somehow I get the feeling we aren't talking about Moony anymore."

Lily smiled faintly at him, "Not so much."

James put his hands in his pockets. "Well, at least we're talking."

"Yeah." Lily shivered, unable to help it. She drew her blanket she was bringing back upstairs tighter around her shoulders.

James instinctively reached out and started rubbing her arms up and down to warm her up. "Better?" He asked.

"A little." Lily whispered, a slight blush creeping into her cheeks. "James?"

"Hmm?"

"It's our last day tomorrow and you probably don't want to spend it talking to me but…"

"Lil, there is nothing I'd rather do than spend it talking with you." He pulled the redhead into a hug and she wrapped her arms snugly around his middle, holding him tightly. He rested his chin on the top of her head, happily holding her where she belonged again, his redhead.

* * *

**_AN/_**

**_Hehe, bet you hated me for that little dream sequence, that is, until you read all the way to the end! Coming up: summertime, our favorite couple find out that they're the Heads, and the end of the story is coming quickly!_**

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	31. Chapter 31: Tunia's Unpleasant Boyfriend

**_Author's Note_**

**_Hehe, Happy Christmas, Merry Kwanza, Have a great Haunakah, Happy New Year and Season's Greetings!_**

**_ENJOY! Meet you at the end! _**

* * *

Lily scowled as her father rushed off, leaving her to unload her trunk herself. She was about to pull her wand out and magically unload it, when the next door neighbor's dog barked loudly, reminding her that she couldn't do magic in a muggle neighborhood. With a sigh she heaved her heavy trunk out of the back seat and began to slowly drag it into the house.

"Hello Lily dear!" Her mother greeted, giving her a swift hug as she dashed out of the door. "I'm glad you're home, I need the car to dash out and get something for Petunia's party."

"Hello Lily, glad you're home." Lily muttered darkly. "Why is Petty having a party? I know it's her birthday, but she's only sixteen, it isn't that big of a deal."

Lily pulled out her wand and waved it, sending her trunk whisking up the stairs and into her room. Then she walked through the living room, which looked much like a danger area, and into the kitchen.

"Why is 'Tunia having such a big party this year?" Lily asked her father.

"She's been begging for one since last year's fiasco." Her father replied, covering the mouthpiece of the phone. "Why don't you go unpack?"

Lily sighed and walked back out of the kitchen, this time heading upstairs. She wished she hadn't arrived right in the middle of the party preparations, as she hadn't seen her parents in nearly a year now. She closed the door to her room a tad more forcefully than was necessary and pulled out her wand. She waved it, clearing all the dust that had accumulated through the year. Then she waved it again, sending the lid of the trunk flying open and the contents of the trunk began to put itself away neatly.

Her clothes hung themselves in her closet, a picture of James and her set itself on her nightstand, quills and parchment stacked up on the desk, books stood neatly on her shelves. With a smile, she latched her trunk and set it in the back of her closet. Then she changed out of the jeans she had worn on the train and into a pair of faded jean shorts and a tank top. Pulling a pair of old tennis shoes on, she headed out of her room and back downstairs.

"I'm going for a walk down to the lake." She called into the kitchen, her dad nodded in reply and waved her off.

Petunia sat in the living room, working on table decorations for her party. "Mum? Oh, it's you. When did you get home?" Petunia spat.

"When did you become such a whiner that you get to throw a huge party?" Lily countered. "I'm going for a walk. And those look hideous, by the way."

Petunia stuck her tongue out, "They do not. They match the theme perfectly."

"What's that? Puke in a flower pot?"

Petunia shrieked and Lily ducked out of the house before her sister could take proper aim and throw the ugly flower pot at her. Lily waved to her neighbors, making small talk for a moment about the school year before excusing herself and heading off. She had just turned onto the path they always used to get to the lake, when something in her back pocket began talking. She jumped and pulled the object out, a mirror in which James Potter's face appeared grinning back at her.

"Merlin, James, trying to scare me to death?" She asked with a laugh.

"I wanted to ask if you could come over for dinner." James replied, his grin widening.

"Probably, I think they're all too busy getting ready for Petunia's party for us to have our normal first dinner of the summer for the next month or so." Lily made a face. "She had the ugliest centerpieces all over the living room. Of course, I told her so and nearly had one chucked at my head."

"Already on the warpath, huh?"

"Oh yeah." Lily examined the mirror, "These are pretty cool, where'd it come from?"

"I got it for Sirius for Christmas a few years ago. We used them to keep in touch when we were in separate detentions. I nicked his from him and slipped it into your trunk since owling can take a while."

Lily nodded, "Oh, how would you like to come to 'Tunia's party? I know there's no way I'm going to get out of it, but I might be able to talk mum into letting you lot come."

Won't your sister flip?" James asked.

"Yeah, that's the best part." Lily grinned. "Everyone will be there, and I'm sure you won't seem weird next to some of her friends."

"Then sure I'll come. When is it?"

Lily thought for a second, "In a week and a half, so Saturday the twenty-third."

"Okay, I have to go, my mum is calling me. But ask about dinner. Just say my name into the mirror to talk to me."

Lily nodded, "I'll let you know."

With a grin, James' face disappeared as quickly as it had appeared there. Lily shook her head at his antics and slipped the mirror back into her pocket. They had talked on the last day of school for hours, finally agreeing that it was best to casually date over the summer and then reevaluate during the school year. Both were content with the decision, but neither was perfectly happy with it, each looking forward to the second Saturday of the term, when they agreed they could discuss it again in Hogsmeade.

Lily kicked a rock on the path, causing it to go scuttling into the woods. She rounded the final twist and came upon the lake. To her surprise, there was a teenage boy standing on the dock and carefully surveying the lake.

"Oh, hello." Lily smiled at the boy, "I hope you don't mind, but I was going to put my feet in."

The boy looked at her appraisingly, "Do what you like."

"I'm Lily, by the way. I don't remember ever meeting you before. Have you lived here long?"

"Vernon Dursley, and I just moved here last summer." The boy turned away from her slightly and Lily looked at him, trying to memorize what he looked like so that she could ask Petunia about him later.

He was a rather large beefy boy, with almost no neck. His hair was neatly combed and he wore long khaki pants and a polo shirt. He appeared as if nature disagreed with him as he peered at the lake distastefully. He glanced at his watch, grunted and turned around.

"I'll see you around?" Lily said politely.

"I don't think so. I attend Smeltings and I do not associate myself with riffraff like yourself." Vernon replied shortly. "Good day."

Lily scowled at his retreating back, "Ugh, I hope I never see you again."

When Lily got back home, her mother was in the kitchen, chopping fresh vegetables from their garden.

"Hello dear, have a nice walk?"

Lily nabbed a piece of lettuce, "It was nice, but I met the most contrary boy at the lake today. Said he had moved here last summer, a Vernon Dursley?"

Her mother froze in her chopping and turned to look at her daughter, "I thought I told you about Vernon."

"No, don't tell me he's dating Petunia." Lily joked.

"For a year now."

Lily immediately stopped laughing, "So he'll be at the party?"

"His family is pitching in some money to help throw it, they'll all be there."

"Mum, he said he didn't associate with riffraff like me. What a shock he's going to get when he finds out I'm his girlfriend's sister."

"Oh dear, and I had hoped you'd all just get along."

Lily made a face, "I'm sure it'll be fine, especially if you let me invite some of my friends so that I don't have to bother Tunia's."

"Your sister isn't going to like it." Mrs. Evans sighed, "Alright, how many? So I know how big of a table you'll need."

Lily counted quickly. "Nine would be nice."

"Nine plus you will make ten. Well, that works out nicely, you'll fill up the large table that I was putting over by the roses."

"Are we having our First Summer dinner?" Lily asked, taking a slice of carrot.

Mrs. Evans closed her eyes, "Oh no! Lily, dear, I'm so sorry. I completely forgot, what with all the party planning and all. I'm sure I can whip something nice up, or we could go out…"

"That's alright Mum." Lily smiled as convincingly as possible, "I was going to ask if I could go over to James' for dinner anyway; I thought we could have it tomorrow."

"Of course you can go to James', whoever that is. And it'll be lovely to have it tomorrow, since the caterers are preparing a sample meal for Friday night, we won't have to reschedule anything." Mrs. Evans sounded relieved.

Lily nodded, "Well, I'm going to go change for dinner then."

"When you're done, I want to hear who this James person is!" Mrs. Evans called as her oldest daughter left the room.

"Okay Mum!" Lily laughed as she climbed up the stairs, ignoring her sister's glare as she passed through the living room.

* * *

"Ugh, I met the most unpleasant boy today, and it turns out he's dating my sister." Lily told James as the two sat playing wizards' chess after dinner. "He already doesn't like me, and I barely said three sentences to him."

"Were you being polite, or were you trying to annoy your sister?" James asked, moving his knight.

"Didn't even know who he was when I met him." Lily replied, "I ran into him at the lake."

"Oh, well, then he sounds like a right prat." James grinned, "Check."

Lily scowled, "He's going to be at the party. Thank Merlin Mum said that you all could come. I told her that it would help keep things calm. Oh, and checkmate."

James frowned at the chessboard. "How'd you do that?"

"You left it wide open for me."

"Care to play again?"

"Not really. Is your ego bruised?"

"A little." James smirked, "But I'm sure you could patch it up right away."

"You're absolutely right, close your eyes."

James looked surprised and then closed his eyes. Lily grinned wickedly as she pulled out her wand and waved it, wrapping James in bandages. He opened his eyes widely and shook the bandages off, "Why you little!" Lily shrieked as her grabbed her around the waist, beginning to tickle her mercilessly.

"Mistress sent me to see if yous wanted dessert, but seeing as is yous is busy…"

Lily jumped up to see a house-elf standing in the doorway, she smoothed her skirt down, "No, no, it's okay, we aren't busy. We'll be right there."

James grabbed her hand and pulled her onto his lap. "Would you please bring us some Twink?"

Twink beamed, "I would be delighted to brings yous and Miss Evans some!"

"Thank you Twink." James grinned, wrapping his arms around Lily's waist to keep her from standing up as the house-elf disappeared with a crack. "You, Miss Evans, make me laugh, jumping up like we were doing something wrong."

"Twink scarred me, I thought it was your parents and I didn't want them coming in and getting the wrong idea. I want them to like me."

"They already do." James assured her, "I think Mum is planning for a summer wedding in the backyard."

Lily pouted and smoothed her skirt, which had inched up a little farther than she was comfortable with, "Stop making fun of me."

"But it's so easy." James kissed her on the mouth, placing his hand on her leg.

She kissed him back and then pulled away, "behave."

He removed his hand, which had begun absently fiddling with the hem of her skirt and put it back on her waist, "Sorry."

Lily laughed, "No you aren't."

"You're right, I'm not sorry at all." James grinned widely.

"Pig," Lily teased as two slices of apple pie each with a scoop of ice cream appeared on the table with a sharp crack.

"Prude," James countered, pecking her on the jaw to show he was kidding before he took his pie from her.

Lily slid off his lap, sitting next to him on the couch with her legs tucked underneath her. James finished his pie and sat there, looking at her expectantly.

"What? Do you want me to feed it to you?" Lily asked, placing a forkful in her mouth.

"That would be smashing." James replied with a wide grin, "Thanks for offering."

"Mmm, not gonna happen." Lily stuck the final bite into her mouth and swallowed, "Yummy that was the best forkful too."

"You're mean."

"Look who's talking."

James locked eyes with her, smiling softly. She beamed back, "What?"

"Did I tell you that you look gorgeous tonight?" He asked huskily.

"Yeah, but feel free to do so again." She whispered breathlessly.

"You look amazing, and I just want to kiss you senseless," He kissed the side of her mouth then he pulled completely back. "Plus, you had a drop of whipped cream on the corner of you mouth that I wanted."

"James Potter, you are absolutely absurd." Lily placed her hands on either side of his face and gently pulled it to hers, kissing him slowly. She let go and pulled back, leaving him slightly stunned, "Sorry, you had a dab of whipped cream as well."

"No he didn't," Sirius laughed from where he leaned casually against the doorframe. "I'm glad I didn't show up a little later or who knows what I would have walked in on."

"Sirius!" Lily exclaimed, jumping up and giving her friend a hug.

"Wow, you act as if you haven't seen me in forever Lily-flower, instead of just since this morning."

James grinned widely as he wrapped an arm around Lily's waist. "I'm just glad she cares to see either one of us more than once in a day."

"Petunia's having a big birthday party on the twenty-third and I want- no, I need you to come."

"Your Muggle sister is having a party?" Sirius' eyes lit up mischievously as he exchanged a grin with James, "and you're inviting the Marauders?"

"Yes," Lily raised an eyebrow, "and the tricks that I know you lot are going to be up to, well, I have no earthly idea who did them since my friends pull magical pranks, not muggle ones."

Sirius and James grinned wider. Sirius gave a slight nod, "Well, since you put it that way, I'm going to let you keep my mirror that James knicked and gave to you. I'm off to check our inventory, just so I can help you prove that you have no idea who could be responsible for those nasty pranks of course."

"I'll come help you later." James clapped his friend on the back, "Good thing Moony and Wormtail are coming later this week. Wormtail always has the best classic ideas for Muggle type pranks."

Sirius saluted, "See you later, Lily-flower!"

"Bye Sirius," Lily called after her friend before turning to James, "Should I be worried?"

"About our nonexistent pranks? Of course not." James laughed.

* * *

**_Okaaaay! So, we met Vernon! Such an eventful chapter, no? Maybe a tad boring, but it's going to set up a bunch of the expeted plotline for the rest of the summer. I say 'expected plotline' because I'm never really more sure about what's going to happen next than you are until I actually start writing it. This story was originally planned to be a series of events in which an item got crossed off Lily's List each chapter. Well, not so much anymore and I would be lying if I said that I didn't like it this way better!_**

**_Anywho, thanks for your continued support of my works! I love you all and wish you the very best during this Holiday Season and always!_**

**_Love From,_**

**_MotherCrumpet_**


	32. Chapter 32: Coupleized

**_OOOTAY! So, it's been busy. I had a couple projects over break, and we've just started rehersals for our spring musical. We're doing HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL. There's a lot of dancing, let me tell you._**

**_Enjoy: I'll meet ya at the end!!_**

* * *

"LILY!" Petunia bellowed up the stairs early a week before the party.

"What?" Lily demanded, coming to the top of the stairs. "What could possibly be so important that you woke me up?"

Petunia scowled, "We're going to buy the decorations for the party. Mum thought you might want to give some input, although I think your taste hardly qualifies as decent for a modern party."

"I don't care what you get for your dumb party. I'll just change whatever looks so awful that I don't want to be embarrassed by your horrible taste in front of my friends."

"Lily." Her mother warned, knowing it was no use. "Why don't you go visit one of your friends for the day? Or maybe you could go into town?"

"Petunia started it." Lily muttered as she headed back into her room and threw herself on her bed. "She's just a spoiled brat now; trying to suck up to the right people with this rotten party and make herself seem important."

Lily had intended to go back to bed, but she found that impossible now. Instead she got up and pulled on a pair of jean shorts, a green spaghetti strap with white polka dots, and her old tennis shoes. Her family had already left when she headed into the kitchen to grab some breakfast. She bit into her muffin as she pulled out the mirror. Checking the time, she knew there was no way that James was already up, with a shrug she said his name and waited for his face to appear in response.

"M-m-morning Lil." James yawned. "What's up?"

"Petuina's being a spoiled little brat, that's what." Lily made a face, "But they're all gone for the day, and I thought maybe you'd like to come see the Muggle town I live outside of."

"Okay, I'll be there in half an hour," James glanced at something on the wall, "No, make that an hour."

"Sounds good. See you then!" Lily grinned widely as his face disappeared from the mirror. She grabbed the paper that was sitting at her father's place at the table and opened it to see what was going on this week. She grinned as an ad for the youth summer production caught her eye, she had been in a few of those before going to Hogwarts and she thought that James might appreciate it.

"_The Smartest Woman in the Kingdom_," She read with interest, "the backwards fairy tale that will have peasantry and royalty alike laughing from beginning to end."

There was a matinee at two-thirty that would be perfect. They could go to lunch at her favorite café and then head over to the Community Theatre for the play. Lily dashed upstairs to change into a nicer pair of jeans and slipped on an emerald green v-neck half-sleeve shirt over her tank top. She pulled off her tennis shoes, choosing to opt for black flip flops instead. Slipping some money and her shortened wand into her back pocket, she headed back downstairs to get some juice and wait for James.

There was a loud crack behind her as she stood sipping her juice and looking out the window at the backyard which would be in the process of being transformed into party central this time next week.

She put down her glass of juice and gave James a hug, "It's been awful. I wish I could just bugger out until after this dumb party."

"Maybe just until the party has already started." James looked around the kitchen eagerly, "I still haven't met your parents after all."

Lily smacked a hand to her forehead, "That's what I forgot." She grabbed a pad of paper and a pen and wrote a quick note to her mother saying that she was in town with James and that she should be home before it got too late.

"So, what are we doing?" James asked, a little distractedly as he was intently examining the refrigerator to see whether the light stayed on when the door was shut.

"We're going to eat lunch and see the summer youth production. I was in them every summer before I went to Hogwarts and I never miss seeing them. Oh, and the light turns off when the door shuts, by the way."

James grinned sheepishly and shut the door of the refrigerator, taking a step backwards. "Sounds cool. It's not a musical though, is it?"

"No, why?"

"My mum dragged me to this wizarding musical one time where the house-elf fell in love with a troll and then killed herself because he loved the princess of the trolls. It was rather depressing and it kind of put me off musicals."

"Oh, well, these are kids' plays, generally sappily happy with dumb puns and some fake sword fighting." Lily laughed, "Troll princess huh?"

"Yeah, and Merlin was she ugly," James began as the pair started for town.

* * *

"Lily Evans, is that you?" An extremely bouncy brunette with extremely exaggerated makeup on hailed Lily and James as they passed the theatre on the way to lunch.

"Hayley Markland?" Lily asked, giving the brunette a huge hug, "I haven't seen you in years! And I love your hair that color, by the way."

"Home for the summer from that school?" Hayley smiled at James, "Who's this?"

"James Potter, this is Hayley Markland. We went to school together and were in the summer plays until I went away to school."

James shook her hand, and smiled widely, "It's good to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine, believe me." Hayley replied with a wide smile.

"Why are you parading around town in full stage makeup?" Lily asked, scrutinizing her old friend's face. "I see you finally got the hang of lining your eyes properly."

"I have to help some of the younger cast with their makeup, so I put mine on at home." Hayley explained.

"Don't tell me you're still doing these old plays."

"I'm at the theatre school a few towns over now." Hayley grinned, "I've got an agent and everything, but I find that nothing beats these summer plays as far as the fun level goes."

"We're coming to see it tonight." Lily gave her old friend another hug. "Which character are you?"

"I'm Genevieve, the main female role. That's why my hair is brown now, I thought brown captured the essence of a strong female protagonist character than blonde did, so I dyed it."

A younger girl poked her head out of the door, "Hayley, can you help me with my makeup now?"

"Of course, I'll be right in Jade."

The girl disappeared back into the theatre and Hayley excused herself, "Stick around after the show tonight. We should go get some ice cream or something."

"Definitely." Lily agreed.

"It was nice meeting you, James. Will you come for ice cream as well?"

"I never turn down the offer of ice cream." James grinned. "See you later then."

Hayley smiled and waved as she disappeared into the theatre.

"She seems nice." James observed as he and Lily crossed the street towards the café. "Were you two good friends?"

"We were pretty close, the two of us and Severus." Lily replied, "But all three of us grew apart after Severus and I started Hogwarts."

James looked puzzled, "Severus? As in Severus Snape?"

Lily sighed, "He grew up a couple of streets over. We were good friends until Hogwarts. I don't like thinking about how much things changed."

James sighed as well and wrapped an arm around Lily's waist, "I don't care who you were childhood friends with as long as they don't bother you now."

Lily suddenly grabbed his hand and yanked him into an alley. "It's Christian!"

"Who?" James asked in confusion.

"He's a Muggle I dated one summer and I don't like running into him. He always tries to start things up again, the rich son of a-"

James' laughing cut her off, "Lily, all we have to do is walk right past him looking happily rich and coupleized together and he'll leave you alone, trust me."

"Coupleized?" Lily made a face, "Pretty sure that isn't a word. And how do you know?"

"Because Sirius used to be Christian," James replied confidently. Taking a firm hold on Lily's arm he strode off into the street laughing heartily. "Oh Lil, you're so witty."

"I'm nothing compared to you, Jay." Lily joined in the laughter, giggling fiercely, "You're the wittiest guy I know."

"Aren't you just too cute?" James pecked her nose, "I wouldn't trade you for the world."

"I think I can get Daddy's car tonight. It's not as nice as your Ferrari that's being repainted, but it's better than nothing. I can't believe they painted it the wrong shade of red like that!"

"What's a Ferrari?" James whispered.

"A really, really expensive thing on wheels that Muggles drive around in. Kind of like a top of the line broomstick." Lily whispered back.

"Oh… right." James nodded. "Anyway, he's gone."

"Thank Merlin," Lily breathed, letting go of James' arm, "I think people were starting to look at us funnily."

"I can see how you used to be an actress." James smiled widely. "You improvise well."

"Part of that is from spending so much time arguing with you." Lily laughed. "Here's the café, are you ready for a traditional Muggle lunch?"

James looked a little skeptically at the menu sign outside the door, "What's a hot dog?"

"Oh, you'll love it! You know those little short dogs with the long bodies?"

"Yeah."

"They cook them up and put them on bread. Oh they're just delicious!" Lily gushed.

James' eyes bugged out and he grabbed Lily's hand, "Maybe we should go eat back at your house."

Suddenly Lily began laughing hysterically, "You believed me!"

James glared at her, "You mean they aren't really dogs?"

"NO!" Lily leaned on James for support, "Of course not!"

"You're mean. You are really mean and I hate you." James folded his arms across his chest.

"Oh, stop acting like a wounded puppy. I was just having a good laugh." Lily wrapped her arms around his middle, so that he had to wrap his arms around her or stand there uncomfortably. "You're really cute and I love you. Besides, you would have done the same thing."

"This is true." James agreed reluctantly, "It was a good one."

"C'mon, let's go get some hot dogs. I promise they really aren't made of dogs and you'll really like them." Lily pecked him on the lips.

"Promise?" James asked.

Lily sighed, "Yes I promise… you big baby."

After lunch, Lily and James headed over to the theatre. Lily paused outside the door, "Are you sure you're going to want to go out with Hayley after the play?"

"Yeah, she seems nice. I'm sure we'd have a good time."

"Part of the reason she was so nice was because she thinks you're hot."

James raised his eyebrows, "Do I detect a hint of jealousy?"

"No." Lily pursed her lips, "Well, a little, just because she's living my dreams, or the ones I had before I went to Hogwarts anyway. Stealing you away would just be the icing on top."

James tilted Lily's chin up and kissed her softly, "That's not going to happen."

"Oh, I know." Lily replied confidently, slipping her hand into his and leading him into the theatre, "I won't let that happen."

James grinned as she paid for their tickets and the pair slid into excellent seats about a fourth of the way back. Lily opened the playbook and flipped through the cast bios, gossiping lightly about the cast she had once been in plays with until the lights dimmed and the play began.

Partway through the play, Lily glanced at James and burst out laughing. He had evidently never seen a fake swordfight before, as he was watching agape. He jumped slightly and looked at her, "What? Genevieve just got clobbered by a group of brigands! How is that funny? Did I miss something?"

Lily shook her head, burying her face in James' arm to keep her laughter from disturbing other audience members. James turned his attention back to the actors, patting Lily absently on the back to calm her down. This, of course, only cause her to laugh harder. She had calmed down considerably by the time Genevieve regained the upper hand over the brigands and poor Fandrall regained his own composure.

James clapped enthusiastically as the actors took their bows, booing the evil Carolina and Duncan and hooting for Genevieve and Fandrall. Lily laughed as James chattered away about the play while they waited for Hayley. She came bounding out after a few minutes in street clothes, dragging the actor who played Genevieve's love interest, Fandrall, in her wake.

"Hi Lily, James!" Hayley gushed, "Did you enjoy it?"

"It was marvelous!" James exclaimed. "and congratulations."

"Erm, thank you?" Hayley laughed, "Lily, this is Ben Watson, he was Fandrall in the play. Ben, this is Lily Evans."

"Hello." Lily greeted, shaking the teen's hand.

"Are you Petunia Evans' sister?" Ben asked, "The one that's away at some prestigious drama school?"

Lily blinked, "Uhm, yes, I am Petunia's sister. Why, has she been terrorizing you?"

Ben laughed, "She hasn't, but her boyfriend is a right prat."

"Tell me about it." Lily and Ben began chatting amiably about Petunia, Vernon and others of Lily's old schoolmates, leaving Hayley to talk to James.

"So, you attend Lily's school, right?" Hayley gave James a winning smile.

"Yeah, we've only recently become friends though." James replied, glancing to Lily for help.

"I knew I hadn't seen you around before. I don't see many good-looking boys at my school, and the ones that are tend to hang out together a lot if you know what I mean."

"Oh, right." James looked as if he desperately wanted to reach out and take Lily's hand just to escape from Hayley's sudden onslaught, but he didn't. "So, what was your favorite scene to learn?"

"I loved the swordfight!" Hayley's eyes suddenly sparkled with passion, "The stage is the best thing in the world, and fighting on it is the best."

"It looked fun."

"If you're going to be around a lot, I could maybe show you?"

"Oh, maybe. I dunno how much I'm going to be here."

"Are you and Lily not _that_ close of friends then?"

James tried not to frown. He didn't like the emphasis she placed on the word 'that'. "We're very close. I just don't know if she'll be over at my house more than I am here or not. She doesn't get along with her sister very well you know."

"Really?" Hayley looked puzzled, "They used to be the best of friends. Almost inseparable. Anyway, look me up if you're in town."

James offered a weak smile and quickly slid onto the bench next to Lily at the ice cream parlor. She looked at him in confusion, but he shook his head. She smiled and gave his hand a quick squeeze, before letting go. James caught her hand though and played absently with her fingers, purposefully ignoring the glare that Hayley was currently giving Lily.

"So, are either of you going to Petunia's party?" Lily asked conversationally, not realizing that Hayley was glaring daggers through her heart. "I'm sure you were both invited, as she seems to have invited half the town."

"I was thinking I might go." Ben replied, "But I didn't know which of my friends were going to end up going."

"I'm going." Hayley said brusquely, "Will you be there James?"

Lily glanced at James, who stared straight at Hayley as he answered in the affirmative, a hint of an edge in his voice. As he answered, he stopped playing with Lily's hand briefly and resumed after turning and giving her a winning smile. Lily looked confusedly at Ben, who shrugged in shared confusion as Hayley sneered at a happy couple in the next booth.

Clearing his throat and hoping to dispel the hostile feeling that seemed to have escalated between James and Hayley, Ben asked conversationally, "So, how long have you been together?"

Hayley's head snapped towards Lily, "You're together!"

"Not exactly." Lily's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as James' hand firmly slipped around hers, clearly stating otherwise. "Well, we're kind of dating, but casually."

"Oh, so you're just doing the fun part." Hayley grinned wickedly. "I could do the fun part much better than she can, I'm sure. If that's what you're looking for."

James' jaw clenched, "That's not what's happening, and I want you to apologize to Lily for implying it."

"No, that's quite alright. I know I phrased it poorly." Lily began.

"Don't make excuses for her, Lil." James glared at Hayley, unblinking.

Hayley laughed, "I know the way the likes of you work. You're obviously the rich, athletic type of boy, the kind that only wants one thing, and that thing isn't an ugly book-loving girlfriend."

"That shows how much you know." James growled, Lily stomped on his foot.

"That's enough!" Lily bellowed. Ben looked panicked, but Lily gave him a reassuring look, "I've only just remembered that I need to get home to help with some of the party planning. It was nice meeting you Ben; I hope to see you at the party. Hayley, you were splendid tonight, maybe I'll see you again soon?"

Hayley averted her look. Lily took that as a 'no' and mouthed 'I'm sorry' to Ben before ushering James out of the ice cream parlor.

"What the bloody hell was that about!" Lily hissed, dropping his hand and stalking off up the street.

"She started it, with her hitting on me and all."

"Everyone at school does that too! I don't see why you care so much."

"I'm sorry. It's just… something about her bothered me. I didn't like it."

"So you made her more jealous? Yes, I can see why that appeared to be the best course of action." Lily sounded nearly hysterical. "Her mother has known my mother for years, I know she'll tell."

"Your mum doesn't know about me?" James sounded hurt.

"Don't be daft, of course she knows all about you. I think you've got her charmed already, go figure. No, I used to have to play nice with Hayley, even when she was being positively spoiled rotten because her mum was my mum's boss."

"You couldn't hit her in the mouth like she deserved?"

"No, but she could hit me and nothing would be done about it." Lily stopped walking.

James took her arm gently and turned her around, "Why did you agree to have ice cream with her then? If you dislike her so much?"

"She's one of the ones that rules." Lily whispered, "I grew up in her world."

"Lily, honey," James wrapped his arms around the sobbing redhead, "you aren't a part of her world anymore. You rule your own world, and mine as well. And you should remember it. Promise me you won't give in to anymore manipulative muggles from your childhood."

Lily nodded into James' chest and he kissed the top of her head gently. "We'd better go back to my house. I wonder if mum and dad are back. You might not want to meet them until after the party planning is finished though."

"I want to meet them whenever they'll see me." James replied, allowing Lily to lead him by the hand down the street. "After all, I'm hoping to make their little girl into my girl and no one else's someday fairly soon."

With a smile as wide as it could be, Lily wrapped her arms around James' neck and kissed him firmly, before pulling away and opening her door. "Mum, Dad, there's someone I'd like you to meet!"

* * *

**_Haha, so, little tidbit of information. I was actually in that play, as Genevieve, a few years back and my favorite scene was the swordfighing scene, well, both of them. It was really funny to be 'married' to Fandrall at the end because he was being played by one of my guyfriends that I had a thing for off and on over the years. Anywho. _**

**_Next chapter is probably going to be the party. Got any good prank suggestions?_**

**_Love from,_**

**_Mother Crumpet_**

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	33. Chapter 33: Sweet Revenge

**_AN: alright, so, I'm not really sure I like the end of this chapter. I think you'll see why. As someone pointed out the last time, Lily seems a little melodramatic at times, and here she goes again. Well, I think I've figured out how to fix that, though. She'll be cheery and snapping back with good comebacks again in no time. Here's a hint for later, she has some issues with being home..._**

****

ENJOY!!!

* * *

Lily awoke suddenly to an ear-piercing shriek. She sat up in bed, her hand already clutching her wand and listened intently for any signs of forced-entry. Eyes wide, she crept out of bed and down the hallway, carefully peering in each door she passed. Her parent's door opened as well, and her mother's head popped out.

"Did you hear that as well, dear?" Mrs. Evans asked.

Lily nodded, she reached out to open Petunia's door which suddenly flew open. Petunia came flying out into the hallway.

"It's already eight-thirty!" Petunia shrieked.

"Bloody-" Lily started but her mother gave her a stern look. "Is that all?"

"Today's the day of my party." Petunia snapped, "I was supposed to start getting ready an hour ago!"

"I thought you were at the very least being mauled by some serial killer in a ninja costume." Lily grumbled, "Scream like that in the morning."

"Well, excuse me." Petunia shouldered her way past Lily and stomped into the bathroom.

Lily made a face at her sister's back and walked back into her room, slamming the door shut.

"Well then," Mrs. Evans muttered, going downstairs to get breakfast started, "Good morning to you too."

Lily walked into the kitchen ten minutes later, dressed in shorts and a tank top so that she could help set up the party without getting her outfit dirty. She poured herself a glass of apple juice and slid into her seat at the table.

"I heard you and your sister are off to a jolly start this morning." Mr. Evans commented, taking a sip of his breakfast tea.

"She woke me up with a bloodcurdling scream." Lily protested. "I thought she was being attacked by Death Eaters or something and it turns out she simply woke up late."

"Death Eaters?" Mrs. Evans asked. "Is that a kind of moth?"

"No Mum." Lily sighed, "Never mind, don't worry about it."

Mrs. Evans put a plate of sausage and eggs in front of her daughter, "So, is that James boy coming to the party tonight?"

"Yes." Lily answered, taking a bite of eggs. "So's Alice and a couple other friends of mine."

Mr. Evans grinned at hearing that James was coming, "I like that James boy. He can come around whenever he wants to."

"He is quite charming, isn't he?" Mrs. Evans blushed, remembering a compliment James had given her.

"You two seemed rather close." Petunia sneered, walking into the kitchen. "None of my guy friends give me a goodbye kiss."

Lily blanched slightly. She had explained things with James to her mother, but not to her father, but Mr. Evans just chuckled, "He's a bold one, that James, not going to take 'no' for an answer. That's the sign of a successful man."

"You have no idea," Lily murmured with a smile, thinking about their past.

"Vernon is bold too!" Petunia exclaimed, suddenly realizing that her parents seemed to like James better than they did her own boyfriend, "He's very bold. Why, just yesterday he was telling me about an essay he's writing for admission to university. Told them exactly why they wanted him."

"That's nice Petunia." Mrs. Evans set a plate down in front of her younger daughter, "Now eat up so that we can set up for your party."

"Tell us about your other friends that are coming." Mr. Evans asked, "This Sirrus?"

"Sirius, dad, Sirius Black." Lily paused for a second, trying to figure out how to describe Sirius. "He's a laugh, always has something funny to say. You'd better watch out for him Mum, he's a real charmer as well. He might try to charm you out of some cookies. And then there's Remus. He's a sweetheart, a real bookworm. And Frank, he's the one dating Alice. I know you'll like him, he treats her like a princess. And you know Marlene, Emmeline and Alice already."

"What about that other one? Dorcas?" Mrs. Evans asked.

"She couldn't come, and neither could Peter. Dorcas said to thank you for inviting her though."

"You have such sweet friends." Mrs. Evans smiled, "I can't wait to meet this Sirius Black. I'd like to see him charm me out of my cookies."

Mr. Evans frowned slightly, "This Frank, he's dating Alice?"

"Oh dad." Lily laughed, "He's the sweetest thing. Don't give him a hard time."

"Alright. I trust Alice's judgment, she's a smart girl." Mr. Evans was overly fond of Alice. He shared Frank's view that she was an angel on earth.

Lily put her plate in the sink, "Let me know when you're ready to set up."

"Going to go talk to James with that dumb mirror?" Petunia scoffed.

"Yes, actually." Lily smiled sweetly at her sister and skipped out of the room.

"I haven't seen her this happy since, well, since we got that letter from Dumbledore." Mrs. Evans said happily, laying her hands on her husband's shoulders.

"The one saying she was a whore?" Petunia asked nastily, storming out of the kitchen.

"Petunia!" Mrs. Evans exclaimed, but her youngest daughter had already slammed the back door with a resounding thud that shook the house. Mrs. Evans sighed, "Anyway, I'm glad Lily's learned to love again."

"Looking at the two of them, I'm sure this one won't turn out the same way." Mr. Evans agreed. "I just wish she and Petunia would learn to love each other again."

Mrs. Evans sighed wistfully, "That's my greatest wish, but I don't think that it is going to happen."

Mr. Evans patted his wife's hand, "Let's give Petunia a little while to calm down before we suggest it, but I think that Lily's magic would be the best way to set up. I'm sure she wouldn't mind helping us."

Mrs. Evans clapped her hands together, "That sounds marvelous. I'll just wash the dishes and then we'll get to work."

A few hours later, the backyard was finally set up and decorated to Petunia's liking. Lily scrunched her nose at the flower arrangements, but chose not to say anything as her parents both looked overwhelmed. They had just received the bill from the caterers and had been charged more than they had been expecting. Petunia was up taking a shower and fretting over her dress that she had gotten for the occasion, so Lily headed into her room to look over her closet and pick out her own outfit. Marlene, Emmeline, and Alice were coming early to get ready together and were planning to spend the next few days as well. Petunia wasn't very happy about that, but then she was invited to spend the week at someone's summer home in France the following Monday; she was packed and ready to go within an hour.

The doorbell rang and Lily dashed out of her room, bounding down the stairs to answer it. Opening it up, she was instantly tackled by her three friends, each trying to give her a hug and thank her for letting them come.

"Why is your hair thrown back like that?" Marlene asked suddenly, pulling away.

"Because Petunia is in the shower and I helped set up this morning." Lily explained, "I'm taking a shower as soon as she steps out of it."

Marlene grinned, "Good girl, exactly the answer I was looking for!"

"Alice!" Mr. Evans exclaimed, coming inside from directing the caterers where to set up. "Marlene, Emmeline, how are you?"

"I'm doing splendid, Mr. Evans." Alice replied with a smile, "Thank you for having me."

"You three are always welcome here." Mr. Evans winked, "Now, I'd better help your mother to deal with these caterers and their extra charges."

The girls laughed before clomping up the stairs with their trunks in tow. Lily had just gotten Alice's stuff into her room and Marlene's and Emmeline's into the guest room when she heard a shriek from the bathroom.

"Did you nick yourself shaving again?" Lily yelled through the bathroom door.

"OUCH!" Petunia wailed, "It's bleeding all over the place! I'll have a huge gash on my leg, my party is ruined!"

Lily sighed, "Open the door and let me fix it."

"You aren't using your ghastly magic on me!" Petunia shrieked.

Lily took a deep breath, "Do you want to go to your own party with band-aids on your legs?"

"No." Petunia muttered, unlocking the door with a click.

"Oh Merlin!" Lily exclaimed, "What have you done to your hair?"

Petunia's eyes bugged out, "Does it really look horrid? I thought perhaps it was just the light!"

Lily bit her lip, "If you'll let me, I'll fix your leg and then take care of your hair as well. It won't be too hard to fix it. Let me see the box of dye."

"Vernon said he liked curly black hair." Petunia explained dejectedly. "I thought I'd try to please him."

"Petty, if he doesn't like you the way you are now, then he isn't the man for you." Lily told her younger sister, glad to slip back into the role of trusted older sister, even if just for a few minutes. "There you go, your leg is all better now. Come out into the hall for a moment, so that I can see your hair properly."

"I don't want it to be that dirty brownish color anymore." Petunia muttered, "It's so plain and ugly."

"'Tunia, black is just not your color." Lily pursed her lips and thought for a second, "I think you would look marvelous as a blonde though. A real blonde, like when you were little."

"Could you?" Petunia gasped excitedly. "I didn't really think I would like the black so much either, but Vernon said…"

"Forget about Vernon Dursley and do what you want for once." Lily waved her wand, turning Petunia's hair a multi-toned blonde color. "I think we could style this a little differently too." She waved her wand a second time and small chunks of Petunia's hair fell onto the floor, leaving her with layers of blonde hair that fell perfectly straight past her shoulders. "There you go, run into your room and have a good look. Oh, and are you done in the bathroom?"

"Yes." Petunia replied distractedly, dashing into her room and letting out a shriek of excitement. She came barreling right back out as Lily was vanishing the locks of hair on the floor and threw her arms around her sister in the first hug they had shared since Lily's second year of Hogwarts. "Thank you!"

Lily shrugged, "It's your big day. Now, go get dressed and put your makeup on."

Petunia scurried off without having to be told twice, allowing Lily to finally get her own shower and then get ready for the party.

"Well, that was the nicest I've ever seen your sister be to you." Alice commented as the four Hogwarts girls dashed around Lily's room getting dressed for the party.

"That's the way things used to be, before Hogwarts." Lily sighed, "It was nice while it lasted."

Petunia had nearly knocked down the door to the bathroom while Lily was drying her hair, needing some makeup essential that she had to have right away. Then she barged into Lily's room and took the black cover-up jacket that Lily had planned to wear, claiming that it was essential to her outfit. Lily had sighed and handed it over, thinking to let Petunia have her day and not argue. A minute later, Petunia had come stomping through the door again and informed Lily that she could not wear the new outfit that she had picked out because it was not fashionable enough. Lily had told her to get the hell out of her bloody room and pushed her out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Marlene was currently digging through all of their clothes, trying to find a new outfit for Lily to wear. The result was an ensemble that featured an item from each of their clothing stores as well as a bracelet of Petunia's that Marlene had nicked from the bathroom. Alice and Emmeline oohed and ahhed as Lily adjusted the clothes so that they fit just right.

Lily was wearing Marlene's dark wash jean miniskirt, Alice's emerald green kitten heels, Emmeline's emerald lace camisole, and her own black cap sleeve cropped jacket. Petunia's black bracelet and her own earrings helped dress up her outfit. Her hair fell in soft waves and her makeup was very natural, with smoky eye shadow and soft pink lips.

"Oh, Lily, you look gorgeous!" Alice gushed as she put in her own earrings. "James is going to die."

Lily smirked, "Oh, I know he will. Thanks guys."

"Don't mention it." Marlene replied, "Now, would you please tie this bow for me?"

Marlene was wearing a deep purple baby doll top, a black skirt, and black heels, her dark hair in waves down her back. Emmeline wore a red cropped jacket over a white spaghetti strap summer dress and red peep toe flats, her hair pin straight. Alice wore a pink wrap dress and black heels with her hair in a simple up-do.

"There you go. All ready?" Lily asked, slipping her wand into the pocket of the jean skirt.

Alice glanced in the mirror, smoothing her dress, "Yes. I can't wait to see Frank."

"I just saw Remus yesterday, but I don't think I'm going to be able to see him again for a couple weeks." Emmeline tugged at her hair, "My parents are dragging me on vacation away from him."

"They don't want you seeing him?" Marlene asked incredulously. "I can't imagine what they would say if they ever met Sirius!"

Lily opened her door and started down the stairs, "They'd probably die of shock!"

"How did your parents react to James?" Alice asked, realizing she hadn't heard the story. "We're they shocked you fell for such a big troublemaker?"

"They absolutely love him, and he claims that his mum is already planning our wedding. Funny, isn't it, that our own parents seem surer of our relationship than we do?" Lily opened the door to the backyard and held it open for her friends, "We'd probably better go meet the guys at the lake."

Petunia was fussing over last minute details about the food and decorations, while Mr. and Mrs. Evans tied balloons to the mailbox and lined the walk to the backyard with more balloons. Lily told her parents that they were off to meet the boys and the four girls started down the street towards the lake where Lily had first met Vernon.

"I'm sure they'll be here soon." Lily sat down on the dock and pulled her shoes off, dipping her feet into the water. Alice and Emmeline joined her while Marlene climbed up onto a boulder a couple feet away. They hadn't been there very long when there was a loud POP and Remus appeared.

"I should have known you would be the first one here." Lily laughed as Emmeline threw her arms around Remus' neck. "None of the others are ever on time."

"Especially not yours," Remus replied with a chuckle. "Did you get here okay, Em?"

Emmeline nodded and started telling Remus about the trip to Lily's when there was another POP announcing Frank's arrival. Alice squealed and threw herself on her boyfriend, excited to see him for the first time since the end of term. She had barely calmed down when there was a third POP and Sirius materialized next to the boulder Marlene was stretched out on. She let Sirius help her down and gave him a quick peck on the lips. He then twirled her around, winked at her, and led her over towards Lily.

"Hey Lily-flower, I've got something to tell you."

Lily's face fell, "What is it? Where's James?"

"He's coming, he'll be here in a second. It's just, there was a bit of an accident with the quaffle this morning and he got nailed right in the face. His mum was fixing his black eye so he didn't look like a brawler at your sister's party."

Lily let out a shriek of laughter, "I missed it! He should have left it! Petty would have been horrified. We could have told everyone that he got into a fight with the bully down the street over the playground territory!"

"I'm offended to know you aren't concerned for my safety." James deadpanned, popping onto the dock and crossing his arms.

Lily leapt up and threw her arms around him. He spun her around in a circle, setting her gently back on the dock and holding her at arm's length to get a good look at her, "You look stunning."

"Oh, I'm aware," Lily replied with a laugh. "And I'd be concerned if you had really hurt yourself, but a black eye is nothing compared to some of the injuries you've gotten."

James scooped her up into his arms, causing her to let out a shriek of laughter, "Kiss it and make it better or I'll throw you into the lake."

"James!" Lily wrapped her arms around his neck tightly.

"You know I will."

"These aren't even my clothes!"

James shrugged, throwing her slightly up into the air and catching her again, "That's not my problem."

"I hate you." Lily said, pursing her lips and wrinkling her nose before giving him a peck on the lips. "There, now put me down."

"Mmm, no, I don't think I will. Where are your shoes?"

"You aren't carrying me home." Lily announced firmly.

"They're the green ones," Alice smirked at her best friend, slipping on her own shoes and then handing Lily hers.

"Oooh, Alice, you are in big trouble when we go to bed tonight. I know where you sleep, remember?"

"I've heard you say some pretty embarrassing things in your sleep, remember?" Alice countered, slipping her hand into Frank's. "Now, I do believe we have a party to get to."

"If you tell me what you say in your sleep, I'll put you down." James grinned winningly at Lily.

"Too bad, I've changed my mind. It would be lovely if you'd carry me."

"Aww, that's no fun." James moved so that his mouth was right beside her ear, whispering, "Did I mention that you look ravishing? I might have a hard time behaving myself tonight."

Lily turned her head and kissed him, "If you do behave yourself, I promise I'll make it worth your time later."

James' eyebrows shot up and he smiled in anticipation, imagining exactly what she might mean by that. "Mmm, love, I'd better put you down now, I don't want your parents thinking I'm trying to kidnap you."

"That'd be nice."

"Being put down or getting kidnapped by me?" James teased.

Lily thought for a second as she slipped her shoes on, "Actually, I can't say I really mind either one. As long as you were the one doing the kidnapping, I don't think I'd be entirely adverse to being kidnapped."

"Anyone else you want to be kidnapped by? I want to know if I'm really being honored by that."

Lily slipped her hand into James', lacing their fingers together, "There's a Ravenclaw Quidditch player that I wouldn't be entirely adverse to being kidnapped by."

James dropped her hand, crossing his arms so that she couldn't just grab it back. Lily stepped in front of him, placing her hands on his chest and making him stop, "James, I was just kidding. You're the only one that I would let kidnap me, and you're definitely the only one that I would even consider kidnapping myself. But seriously, you couldn't blame me even if I did want to be kidnapped by that Ravenclaw guy, he is fine."

James rolled his eyes, before he gently ran his thumb across her lips. She smiled softly and sighed contently as he leaned down to give her a gentle kiss. Then he grabbed her hand and set off quickly towards her house, "We're going to give your parents the wrong idea, being so much later than the others getting there."

"Who cares?" Lily laughed, "I doubt they even notice; besides they absolutely love you."

"Really?" James asked, coming to a sudden halt. "I was afraid they wouldn't like me."

"Oh, no, in fact, they like you so much that Petty is jealous. They don't like Vernon half as much as they like you." Lily tugged at his hand, so he started walking again, a relieved smile plastered to his face. "I think the only person they like more than you is Alice."

"Well that's understandable; Alice isn't possibly going to take their daughter away from them. It's only natural that they would like her more than me."

"Hmm, don't tell Alice, but I happen to like you more than I do her, at least when it comes to certain aspects of our relationship."

"Yeah, I'm thinking you kiss Alice about as much as I kiss Sirius."

"I'm hoping you don't kiss Sirius on a regular basis." Lily made a face, "If you do, then I would really rather not know about it."

"Nah, I save all of my kissing for you these days. Well, and occasionally Mum wants a peck on the cheek, but that's different."

Lily laughed, her grip tightening on James' hand as they neared the house. The others had just reached the mailbox and stopped for a second for them to catch up. James gave Lily an encouraging smile, "You're going to be fine. Don't worry about your sister or that Hayley girl."

Lily smiled back, glad for the encouragement. "C'mon guys, I'm hungry. I think Petunia picked some decent food from the caterers."

"Good, Harold's hungry. You two took forever." Sirius chided. "What were you doing anyway?"

Marlene hit Sirius, "Sirius! Please, none of us want to know what they were doing! We're about to eat!"

"This is true." Sirius nodded in agreement, "excellent point, Marlene."

Lily ignored her friends and headed into her backyard. James stood there for a second, watching her walk away in the jean miniskirt, "Now which one of you do I get to thank for that little ensemble?"

"That would be me." Marlene smirked, "D'you like the skirt?"

"Bloody hell yes."

"It's Sirius' favorite too." Marlene laughed, as her boyfriend looked thoroughly confused. "Lily's wearing my skirt, Sirius."

"Ah, right." Sirius followed Lily, "I knew that."

"Mmm, I would actually hope that you didn't, because that would make both me and James angry at you. And I really do think that James would win in a fight between the two of you."

"Well, I plan to keep him on my side anyway." Sirius stuck out his tongue, "So nyahh."

"You are so strange, Padfoot." Remus shook his head. "Most days, I still don't understand why I'm friends with you."

Marlene wrinkled, "I know exactly what you mean, only I'm dating him."

"You should have chosen a different Marauder." Alice teased. "You had your pick first."

"Tell me about it. It's a good thing I'm a nice person and let Lily have her Marauder, or she'd be the one stuck with Sirius."

"I don't think Prongs would like that very much." Sirius clapped James on the back as the friends looked around for Lily, "And I'm not as trainable as he is. Lily would get frustrated and give up."

"What goes on in your head is a mystery that I don't think will ever be solved, Padfoot." James shook his head and led the others over to where Lily stood talking to her parents. "Hi Mr. Evans, Mrs. Evans. Everything looks wonderful."

"Sucking up to the future in-laws?" Sirius whispered, loudly enough that everyone heard.

James elbowed him in the stomach, "Padfoot, heel, before we turn you out like a dog."

Sirius glared at James, before pushing him out of the way and turning his full Black charm on Mrs. Evans. "Hello Mrs. Evans, it is simply magnificent to meet you. I have heard so much about you. Lily-flower says your cookies are heavenly, I really must try one."

Mrs. Evans grinned widely, "Oh, you must be Sirius Black. Lily said you would try to charm me out of my homemade cookies."

Lily laughed and introduced the boys to her parents. Frank shifted nervously as Mr. Evans eyed him appraisingly.

"Psst, James," Mr. Evans whispered, pulling James aside slightly. "This Frank chap, is he a decent sort?"

"Yes sir." James replied honestly, "Frank is an excellent student, hardly ever gets in trouble."

"And does he treat Alice right?"

"I've never seen anyone be so attentive before. Frank absolutely adores her, and he takes care of her better than anyone else could."

"Alright," Mr. Evans clapped James on the back, "I trust your word, James. I can't be too careful with teenagers, you know."

"I understand." James replied, "They aren't all Frank Longbottom, that's for sure."

Mr. Evans started up a conversation with Frank and Alice, leaving James to wander back to Lily who was standing slightly off to the side, watching her parents talk to her friends. He slipped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on the top of her head.

"You father grilled me about Frank." James laughed softly. Lily could feel the light rumble of his laughter on her back, making her smile softly.

"I told you he would." Lily laughed, "What did he ask?"

"Just what sort of guy Frank was, and if he treated Alice properly. I told him that Frank adores Alice and takes better care of her than anyone else I've ever seen."

"Thank you." Lily lay her hands on top of James' hands and laced their fingers together, "Dad really worries about Alice. You don't know how much easier it was to just humor him by playing along with the interrogation."

"I'm just glad he wasn't grilling me." James laughed, causing Lily to feel the pleasant rumble again. "I definitely don't mind him interrogating me about someone else."

"Dad knows I can take care of myself. I would have let you into my life if you weren't a good guy. Especially not after everything I've gone through."

"I could never intentionally do anything that might hurt you." James agreed, rocking her gently back and forth, "Now, let's eat. I'm famished."

Lily laughed, "How did I know that was coming?"

"I wouldn't eat the pudding though, if I were you."

"Has Sirius been near it then?"

"Yeah, pretty sure he just dumped something into it now. I doubt it's anything too bad, but it's always best to steer clear."

"Right, we both know what happened the last time Sirius put something in someone's food."

"Ah, good memories." James sighed nostalgically, "The thought of Snape professing his love to Professor McGonagall always brings a tear to my eye."

Lily shook her head and dished up her food before making her way to the table where Sirius and Marlene sat. She surveyed the turnout thoughtfully, "Petunia is going to be upset unless more people show up fashionably late."

"Why didn't you tell us it was fashionable to be late?" Sirius demanded, "Prongs was freaking, trying to get ready on time."

Lily stuck her tongue out, "I figured you lot were fashionable enough already. I'm guessing I was right in that assumption because all of the girls are eyeing you four."

"Really? Which ones?" Sirius sat straight up and looked around eagerly.

Marlene smacked him, "Oy, blockhead, girlfriend sitting right here!"

Sirius smile sheepishly, "I just wanted to see this Hayley. Prongs said she was gorgeous."

Lily raised an eyebrow as James sat down in the seat next to her, "Did he now?"

"Oh yeah, apparently she's a hottie." Sirius grinned wolfishly, picturing her in his head. "Hayley Markland Black, I like the sound of that."

Marlene stomped on Sirius' foot, causing him to yelp loudly, "Hello! Dumbass! Your girlfriend whom you claim to love is sitting right next to you!"

"Ouch, you don't have to be so violent about it." Sirius moaned, rubbing his sore foot.

"See if you get a satisfactory goodbye then." Marlene tossed her hair and turned so that her back was facing towards Sirius and calmly started eating again.

"Oy! I was just joking! Marlene, don't be mad at me! I didn't mean it!" Sirius wailed, dropping his throbbing foot and falling to his knees on the ground in front of her.

"Sirius, don't be a drama queen." Marlene said calmly, "You're making a scene."

"He's whipped." Lily murmured to James, who nodded in agreement. "So, you think Hayley Markland is gorgeous?"

"Who told you that?" James asked in confusion.

"His Majesty the Drama Queen."

James smacked himself in the head, "Padfoot doesn't have a very big vocabulary, so he assumed I was saying the words wrong."

Remus sat down next to Lily, "Please tell me you didn't use big words with Padfoot. You know his vocabulary is nonexistent."

James sighed, "I called her a gregarious, aggravating harpy. Padfoot assumed I was saying she was a gorgeously, aggravating hottie."

"Jeez Prongs, you of all people should know that the finer points of the English language are far beyond Padfoot's grasp."

Lily let out a peal of laughter. "She played a harpy once."

James groaned, "There's the harpy now. Psst, Padfoot!"

"Huh?" Sirius looked up from the food that he was shoveling into his mouth, much to Marlene's disgust.

"Woah, Padfoot, slow down a little." Remus chided, "And please close your mouth, I don't care for seefood."

Sirius closed his mouth, looking puzzled, "I didn't know chicken was seafood."

James sighed, "Don't worry about it, Padfoot. Don't you want dessert?"

Sirius' eyes bulged with excitement, "Are there cookies?"

"Uhm, how about we go and look." James glanced at Lily who was eying him suspiciously, "uh, be right back?"

Lily rolled her eyes and turned her attention to Alice and Frank who had just sat down, "Oh, I wouldn't eat the pudding if I were you."

Alice froze with her spoon halfway to her mouth, "Why not?"

"James saw Sirius dump something in it."

Frank spit out his mouthful of pudding, "Where's the bathroom, I'm going to go rinse it all out of my mouth."

"Uh, you might want to just use your own water." Marlene spoke up, "I think the bathrooms are pretty full. Sirius got his hands on some Muggle laxatives."

Frank grabbed his water glass and dashed off into the woods behind the Evans' house. Alice dropped her spoon onto her plate and got up to get a new one.

"Oh Merlin, my room is right next to the bathroom too." Lily moaned.

Emmeline made a face, "We have to sleep here. It's going to smell putrid."

"We're witches." Marlene reminded, "Just a little cleaning charm and we're covered."

"I vote we banish the smell to Sirius' room." Lily muttered darkly.

Remus laughed, "I will pay you if you do."

"How much?" Lily asked, suddenly businesslike.

"I think that is worth a galleon."

"Deal." Lily stuck out her hand and the two shook on it.

"Lily, that's awful." Marlene gasped between giggles.

"You're just mad you didn't think of it first." Lily replied, grinning wickedly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a couple of plotting teenage boys to check on. Oh, and do me a favor Remus, go take care of Frank."

Remus grinned and strode off to help their friend get rid of any unpleasant effects the laxative pudding could have. Lily, meanwhile, snuck up on James and Sirius who were talking conspiringly near the dessert table.

"I still don't understand why you called her a hottie." Sirius was saying, "She isn't ugly, but she isn't spectacular looking either."

"I didn't call her a 'hottie', Padfoot." James replied, obviously exasperated that his best friend wasn't following anything he was saying, "I called her a harpy."

"Whazzat?"

"She terrorized Lily when she was growing up, alright? And she hit on me."

"She bothered Lily-flower!" Sirius threw his hand up in the air, "I shall never let that happen again!" He paused for a second, "Erm, so, what's the plan Prongs?"

"I dunno, I was waiting for one of your brilliant ideas."

"Oh, erm, well, maybe we could… no that involves magic. Hmm, how about… nah ran out of those last week." Sirius thought for a second, "Nope, I got nothing."

"How about you give her a double dose of those laxative pudding?" Lily suggested, stepping up behind the pair."

"Good idea Lily! Padfoot, we'll give her some of your laxative pudding with extra laxative!" James wrinkled his nose, "Oh, we're busted, aren't we?"

"Eh, I didn't hear anything interesting." Lily replied with a laugh, calling over her shoulder as she walked away, "I just wanted some ice cream and I thought I'd join in the hypothetical discussion."

"Ah, right." Sirius nodded, leaning towards James. "So, wait, does that mean we're not busted?"

"All systems go," James grinned widely, watching the redhead walk away from him. "Damn, I love that skirt."

"Don't stare at your non-girlfriendish type thingie's arse." Sirius clapped his hand over his friends' eyes.

"Why not? You do it all the time."

"This is true." Sirius dropped his hands, "So, what was the plan again?"

"There's something in the food!" Petunia wailed to her parents sometime later, after the laxatives had taken effect.

"With the amount I paid for it, there had better not be." Mr. Evans replied, turning back to the neighbors that he and Mrs. Evans sat talking to, "That food cost me an arm and a leg."

"It tastes excellent, dear." Mrs. Evans patted her husband on the arm. "Petunia, go enjoy your party and don't worry about it. Oh look, Mr. and Mrs. Dursley finally made it."

Across the party, Lily latched onto James' arm, "Oh Merlin, there's four of them!"

"Ow, let go of my arm before it falls of." James loosened Lily's grip and rubbed his sore arm, "Four of who?"

"The Dursleys! Petunia's boyfriend!"

"I'm sure they aren't all that bad." Alice said, "Maybe we should talk to his sister. Maybe she would like to stay the night as well."

"No! Alice, don't, please!" Lily grabbed her friend's arm, "You don't understand. Vernon is awful!"

"Worse than Severus Snape?" Sirius asked.

"You have no idea." Lily replied flatly.

"Lils," James said gently, "Let go of Alice. Good, now, take a deep breath. Do you need to go on a walk, or would you rather stay here?"

Lily sighed, "I'll be fine."

Frank took Alice's arm protectively, "Do you want to dance?"

Alice beamed, "I would love to."

Remus and Sirius followed Frank's lead, asking Marlene and Emmeline to dance. They giggled and made their way over to join the dancing couples.

Lily glanced at a pair of giggling girls who were pointing at James as they walked by. She rolled her eyes, "Honestly, do they really just care that you're so freakishly attractive?"

James laughed, "You think I'm freakishly attractive?"

Lily turned pink, "Erm, well, yes."

"Just so you're aware, all the guys are looking at you the same way." James grinned as Lily's face darkened with embarrassment.

"I shouldn't have worn Marlene's skirt; it's far too revealing."

"I happen to like that skirt very, very much."

"Thank you for making my point." Lily instinctively stepped a little closer to James when a boy walked behind her, gazing unashamed at her rear end. James slipped an arm around her protectively, giving the boy a dirty look. The boy grinned wolfishly in response and gave him a thumbs up.

Lily had just buried her face in James' arm when Petunia came storming up, "You freak! This is my party, all the attention is supposed to be on me! But you had to dress like a little whore! No wonder you got yourself attacked at that freak school you go to, dressing like that you're practically inviting that to happen!"

Lily stared at her sister in shock, tears springing to her eyes. James wrapped his arms around her and quickly took her into the house, calling back to Petunia, "You don't know what you're talking about."

James half-carried Lily into her father's office, shutting the door behind them. He sat in the big chair by the fireplace and pulled her onto his lap, rocking her gently and rubbing her back. Seconds later, their friends burst into the room, concern written on their faces. Alice sat on the arm of the chair and gave Lily a hug, looking at James questioningly. Marlene and Emmeline both sat on the floor in front of the chair, patting Lily on the knee and sharing puzzled looks. Remus closed the door, and the three boys stood slightly awkwardly in the doorway, having no idea what to do.

"Erm, I'll make tea?" Frank mumbled, slipping out of the room. Remus followed him quickly.

"What happened?" Sirius mouthed to James.

James explained what had happened, never once letting his hold on Lily loosen. She had quieted down and stopped crying by the time he had finished, burying her head into his chest and hugging herself tightly.

The Gryffindors looked outraged, Marlene opened her mouth to say something, but thought better of it and closed it. Lily murmured something to James, who firmly replied that she was not stupid and that as soon as Frank and Remus got back with her tea she would feel much better.

The girls headed out to help Frank and Remus with the tea, Marlene dragging Sirius along behind her. James lifted Lily's chin so that she was looking at him and wiped the tears off her face.

"She has never, never said anything like that to me before." Lily whispered. "She's been intentionally mean, but she's never said anything that would really hurt me like that. I wasn't expecting it."

"I hate to see you cry, you know." James sighed, "And this is the second time you've cried when I've come to your house."

"I didn't mean to." Lily muttered.

"I wasn't saying you did, love." James kissed her temple, "You just need to remember that it doesn't matter what people say. I know that you know that, because I've heard some of the things people say to you at school, but whenever someone you were once close to says something hurtful, you crumble."

Lily opened her mouth to respond when the door flew open and Hayley Markland appeared in the doorway, looking terribly distraught.

"What's the matter with you?" She asked nastily. "Did someone make the baby cry? Tell me who so I can go thank them."

"What's the matter with you?" Lily echoed, matching Hayley's tone, "Did someone slip something in you pudding? Tell me who so I can go and kiss them."

Hayley glared, and then her eyes widened and she dashed off, desperately searching for the bathroom. The others walked in, grinning widely.

"Way to tell her Lily-flower!" Sirius exclaimed, "I think she got a triple dose, thanks to Prongs."

Lily took the cup of tea Remus handed her, grinning from ear to ear. She chose to stay where she was, sitting on James' lap with his arm wrapped securely around her waist while she drank it. "Thank you, I'm sorry this is such a rotten party."

"Rotten party?" Marlene asked, raising an eyebrow, "This is the best party I've been to in a while. It's had everything a good party has, pranks, dancing, romance, drama."

"Don't forget humiliation." Emmeline pointed down the hall, where Hayley was shrieking and banging on the bathroom door, apparently having not made it to the bathroom in time.

"Ah," Sirius sighed contentedly, "Sweet, sweet revenge."

* * *

**_Hmm, not sure I'll ever eat pudding again, after writing this chapter. Not that I get to eat it very much anyways..._**

**_Anywho, did you see what I meant by melodramatic? Lily has been bawling her eyes out at everything. You'll see why farily soon, unless I change my plan and just make it a freak happening, which is also fairly likely. I'm not the best planner. Stream of Conscious and all that jazz._**

**_Mmmm, I'm going to go and eat dinner because I am famished. Hope you enjoyed!_**

****

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	34. Chapter 34:All Things Sirius and Marlene

**_Finally, we find out why Lily has been so melodramatic this summer..._**

**_Enjoy! And don't forget to let me know exactly how much you enjoyed it by sending me a little review!!! Even if it simply says 'nice', that's cool._**

* * *

"Mum, I am going back to Hogwarts and that is that," Lily announced firmly that night.

"Lily, I don't want you going back to that school. You were attacked there once, who's to say it won't happen again?" Her mother was taking the firmest stance on this that she had ever taken on anything. Normally, Lily and Petunia could ask the right way and get anything they wanted, but Mrs. Evans was refusing to waver.

"It could have happened anywhere," Lily protested. "And I was taken care of. You can't take me out of my last year of school! I have to finish Hogwarts."

"I don't like the idea that your father and I weren't around to take care of you. There are people out there who would do anything to get what they want. You aren't going back to that school. I don't trust the administration to keep something like that from happening again."

"Look, what happened to me…" Lily took a deep breath, "Adam attacked me, he's graduated now. I'll never see him again and even if I did I would have him arrested and sent to Azkaban. Mum, James and Sirius aren't going to let anything happen to me. They are the most overprotective teenagers you'll ever meet. You trust James, I know you do. He's not about to hurt me or let me get hurt."

"Lily, you are much too young to have to deal with this kind of thing. You shouldn't—"

Lily cut her mother off, "Mum, it happened, alright. There is no changing that. You know I'm going to be overly careful so that something like this never happens to me again. I'm going to be careful, but I can't forget what happened and I certainly can't live in fear. When you told me at the beginning of the summer that I couldn't go back to Hogwarts, I was upset. I didn't want to go to Petunia's school. Mum, home isn't home anymore, Hogwarts is. Petunia hates me; she doesn't want me at her school. I don't want to be at her school. I am going back to Hogwarts, even if I have to leave you and Dad forever. It isn't something I can give up. I have to do it."

"But, we can't protect you there!"

"One of the nice things about Hogwarts is that I've learned to protect myself," Lily replied, leaving the kitchen. "I'm going to James' for the week. If you don't change your mind about letting me go back to Hogwarts, then don't expect to see me before term starts!"

"Don't you walk out of here on me!" Mrs. Evans bellowed, but nobody heard her voice because Lily had already disaparated from the house.

James sighed as the obviously angry redhead gave him a hug, "What did I do this time?"

"You didn't do anything," Lily replied shortly, still riled up from her argument with her mother. "I've had a row with my mother."

"Your mum doesn't row. She's the most lenient parent I've ever met."

"This is the only time I've ever heard her yell at anyone," Lily began pacing around the Potter's kitchen. "D'you reckon I can stay the rest of the summer here?"

"I don't think Mum and Dad will object, but what in Merlin's name is going on?" James looked on as Lily continued her frustrated pacing.

"It all started when I got home this summer. At first Mum said maybe I shouldn't go back to Hogwarts, because of Adam and that mess. Well, I was like, Mum, really, I'm alright. Then she started talking as if I wasn't going back, making plans for me to go to Petunia's school, trying to get me to meet some of Petunia's friends that I would be in school with, that sort of thing. I laughed and asked her why she was doing this; that I was going back to Hogwarts. I had to finish school. She told me I could finish muggle school just as well as I could finish Hogwarts. We got into the first fight the night before you came with me to the play.

"That was part of the reason that I think Hayley got to me. She was being awful, and I started to think about how I might have to go back to that life and I started crying. And then, with you being all supportive, I just realized that if my mother had her way, I would have to give up the best shot I had at being in a good relationship.

"After that, we've fought about once a week since. When we got into that spat over your parent's dinner party, I had just gotten through fighting with my mum. The night before Petunia's party was the worst fight before tonight's. She said it was probably my fault that Adam had tried to rape me. That I was just asking for it by acting so naïve and letting people walk all over me. Petunia walked in during that one, she had just gotten home from a date with Vernon. That's why, when she echoed Mum's words at her party, I snapped. I knew that Mum didn't mean what she was saying, but the fact that she phrased it that way…

"But tonight. Oh, Merlin. James, it was awful. Except for when Petunia walked in, the fights have always been between my mum and me. Tonight's was the same, but something about it was just brutal. I told her I hated her. That thought has never crossed my mind, but at that moment I did. I really, really hated my mother. We had to have been fighting for forty-five minutes. I just repeated my arguments, what I had been saying all summer about why I had to go back to Hogwarts, but she still refused to listen."

Lily plopped onto a stool, at the counter. James sat next to her, watching her carefully. "Lily, what happened?"

"I ran away." Lily took in a gasp of air. "I told her that if she didn't change her mind about letting me go to Hogwarts that she shouldn't expect me back. I said that Hogwarts was my home, not with her."

James shook his head, "I understand that she wanted to protect you, but to not let you go back to school…"

"Oh my God, James, I just ran away from home!" Lily's eyes widened in shock. "I told my mother I hated her, and left! What is wrong with me?"

"You were upset, it isn't your fault. She knows you didn't mean it."

"What if she dies and the last thing I said to her was that I hated her?"

"You kept talking after that, so technically—"

"James!"

"Lily!"

"Sirius!" Sirius shouted, stepping into the room. "What's with the hysterics?"

"I ran away from home," Lily blinked. "Oh Merlin, I've turned into you!"

"I knew your parents should just become the official shelter for runaways," Sirius grinned widely. "Congrats, Lily-flower, on making the safe haven."

"Sirius Black, this is not funny!" Lily snapped. "I told my mum I hated her."

"I've been telling mine that for ages," Sirius blinked as the situation suddenly dawned on him, "Only, I actually hate my mum. What's wrong with you? Your mum is great!"

"You aren't helping Padfoot!" James hissed, throwing a potholder at his best friend. "If you have to speak, at least say something helpful!"

Sirius shrugged, "I'm no good at that. Maybe you should—"

"Shut up!" Lily snapped.

Mrs. Potter came rushing into the kitchen, "What on Merlin's great green earth is going on?"

"Congrats, Mrs. P," Sirius grinned. "You've just become the safe harbor for another runaway teen."

"Lily?" Mrs. Potter asked. "What happened dear?"

"My mother doesn't want me to go back to Hogwarts," Lily deadpanned. "She says she doesn't trust them to keep me safe any longer."

"Why, I talked to Dumbledore myself after James told me about that awful boy. You're perfectly safe. We went through step by step how he is going to be sure that nothing like that ever happens again. Besides, I doubt if my son and Sirius are going to let anyone get even half as close to hurting you like that again."

"That's what I told her, but she seems to think that I should just forget what happened, forget Hogwarts and everything and go back to my muggle life. I can't do that. I can't, I just can't!"

"Nobody's going to make you," James gave his mother a pleading look.

Mrs. Potter sighed, "Lily, honey, what you need right now is a good long sleep. You'll feel much better in the morning. If you need me to, I can talk to your mother. I'm sure she will feel better knowing Dumbledore's plans. I bet he'll even come and discuss it with her over tea. Yes, I think that's the best option. Dumbledore isn't about to let his brightest student leave his school because her mother is worried about her safety."

"She said it was my fault," Lily said, picking at the countertop. "But it wasn't. It couldn't have been."

Mrs. Potter shared a look with James, who looked as if he might explode. "No, Lily, what happened to you was not your fault. It wasn't anybody's fault, really. Sometimes awful things happen to wonderful people for no good reason, but no matter what anyone says, it was not your fault. You didn't ask him to do those things to you. Don't ever let anyone tell you it was your fault."

Lily bit her lip, nodding.

Sirius met James' look and nodded his agreement. Then, he slipped out of the room and headed off to get everything that Lily loved the most, and to let their friends know what was happening.

"Lils," James said quietly, "let's get you to bed, alright?"

Lily took James' hand and the couple headed upstairs, James glancing back at his mother as they went. Mrs. Potter sank onto the stool that Lily had just left, watching the pair go, concern for Lily etched into every feature.

Lily slept with James in his bed that night, not able to bear being alone. She slept fitfully, muttering about Adam, Petunia, and her mother. James didn't sleep at all, watching over her carefully, soothing her when she started having nightmares. When she finally fell into a peaceful sleep in the early hours of the morning, James dozed off lightly, catching a little bit of sleep before waking up when she did.

"Morning, Lils," James kissed her temple. "How did you sleep?"

Lily grimaced, snuggling deeper into James' arms, "I've slept a lot better. You?"

"I was too worried about you to sleep," James replied honestly. "Do you feel any better this morning?"

"Sort of." Lily was quiet for a minute, thinking about how to phrase her feelings. "I think leaving was the right thing, but I hate that it had to happen that way. I still love my mum, but I can't leave Hogwarts. I can't leave the one place that I really belong."

James squeezed Lily reassuringly, glancing over at the clock. "Any chance we could both get a few more hours of sleep? It's only six-thirty."

Lily yawned, "I think I can manage that."

"Mmm, wonderful," James turned Lily so that her back was against his chest and wrapped his arms around her waist. He kissed her jaw lightly, "I love you."

"I love you too." She murmured, smiling softly as she drifted back to sleep.

After those four words, James fell asleep happier than he had ever felt in his life, the girl he loved safely in his arms and with the prospect of a few hours of much needed sleep ahead of him.

* * *

"Don't be ridiculous!" Alice exclaimed. "I'm sure they're just sitting in his room and talking."

"I wouldn't bet on it," Sirius muttered. "She used to come and sleep with him all the time last year."

"She didn't ever sleep with him!" Remus exclaimed, as Alice's eyes bugged out. "What Padfoot meant is that Lily would come in and sleep in James' bed some nights because she was too scared to sleep alone."

Alice let out a whoosh of air, "Sirius, don't scare me like that! I thought you meant they had actually slept together!"

Sirius looked thoroughly confused. "They did."

"Alice thought you meant the birds and the bees, Pad," Remus explained.

Sirius looked appalled, "Get your mind out of the gutter, Alice!"

"You're the one who said it!" Alice protested.

"How about we go check on Lily?" Remus suggested, cutting off the fight before it could get started.

"Fine, but Sirius, you should really think about what you say before you say it," Alice pouted.

"Yeah, well, Alice, you should think about what you're thinking before you think it," Sirius countered.

"Padfoot, that made no sense," Remus rubbed his temples, thinking this was going to be a very long morning.

Sirius stuck out his tongue, "It did in my head, so nyaahhh!"

"Very mature," Alice muttered, opening the door to James' room.

"No one asked you, Alice."

"Okay!" Remus bellowed, shutting the door to James' room. "I can't take it anymore, what is wrong with you two?"

"Marlene broke up with me," Sirius replied. "And Alice, the expert on all things Marlene and Sirius, thinks it's my fault!"

"Big deal," Remus looked at Alice. "Sirius and Marlene break up almost twice a week."

"HEY! I resent that."

"It's true," Remus replied with a shrug.

"They may break up every week, but not like this," Alice glared at Sirius. "Marlene thinks that Sirius doesn't love her."

"I told her she was being daft," Sirius shrugged.

"Yeah, and that was real smooth!" Alice exclaimed. "You, Sirius Black, are just about the dumbest person I have ever met!"

"I don't want to talk about this!" Sirius bellowed. "Let's just check on Lily-rose, alright?"

"Fine," Alice reached for the door, which flew open to reveal James and Lily looking rather peeved.

"Why are you screaming at the top of your lungs while we're trying to sleep?" James asked, deadly calm.

Remus threw his hands up in the air, hoping to communicate innocence, "They're mad at each other because Sirius and Marlene broke up."

"Duh, it's Wednesday," Lily put her hand on the door to shut it. "If you don't mind, James and I are going back to bed."

"Lily Marie Evans!" Alice scolded. "You should not be sleeping in the same bed with your boyfriend!"

"I've been doing it all last term. I think I'm quite safe, thanks," Lily rolled her eyes and shut the door in her best friend's face. "Come back when you can tone down the noise levels and be civil to each other!"

"Well!" Alice huffed, heading downstairs to the kitchen. "See what I get for trying to be sure she was alright."

"You weren't trying to be sure she was alright, you were attacking me for something I didn't do!" Sirius waved his hands in the air wildly, following her.

Remus sighed, walking in the opposite direction, "Merlin, help me."

Half an hour later, Lily and James walked into the kitchen to find Sirius and Alice calmly playing a game of Wizard's Chess.

"Woah, what happened?" James asked, glancing into the cabinets for something to eat. "Less than an hour ago you were fighting like cats and dogs."

"We discussed it rationally," Alice replied, moving her knight to E5.

"And?" Lily asked, taking a glass of apple juice from James and sitting down at the counter.

"We've decided that it wasn't my fault," Sirius explained. "Marlene is insane and needs to calm down and then we will be able to fix everything like we always do."

"Okay, Dr. Phil," Lily muttered, causing everyone to look at her in confusion. "Sorry, Muggle reference."

"Where's Remus?" James asked, glancing around the kitchen like he expected to find the lycanthrope hiding in a corner.

"Library?" Alice suggested. "Ha, check mate!"

Sirius made a face, "Two out of three?"

"You're on!" Alice looked up at Lily. "Er, after I make sure Lily is alright, that is."

"I'm fine, Alice. Play your chess game," Lily set her empty glass in the sink. "I'm going to go find Remus and let him know that the peace treaties have been signed."

James laughed before draining the juice from his own glass, "I'll come with you. I'm afraid these two might not be done arguing yet."

"I'd hate to see what Sirius and Marlene would be like," Lily grimaced. "I mean, Alice and Sirius were only fighting over whose fault it was."

"Alice is such a mother hen. She has to take care of all her little chickies, doesn't she?"

"You have no idea," Lily opened the door to the library, walking in and looking around. "Remus?"

"Is it safe?" Remus replied, emerging from a chair in the corner. "I thought the yelling had died down, but I was afraid I had just gone deaf."

"Nah, they're done fighting," James shook his head. "I'm guessing this breakup is somehow different than the others?"

"Marlene seems to think it's a permanent change."

"Oh, jeez," Lily made a face. "I would like seventh year to be nice and uncomplicated. If it's a permanent change, then maybe I won't go back after all."

"They are a ton easier to live with when they're together, aren't they?" James reflected. "They'll be at each other's throats all year."

"Dumb dog," Lily muttered.

"Dumb girl, too," Remus laughed. "So, Lily, how are you today?"

"I'm fine, hoping that Mrs. Potter can help sort it all out, but not really expecting it. I just feel bad for dumping myself on James' family."

"Don't," James said firmly. "My mother's always wanted a daughter. I think you'll wish you had gone and dumped yourself on Alice's family before the end of the summer."

"Nah, have you ever met Gideon and Fabian?" Lily shook her head. "They always make fun of me."

"Let's go check and make sure that Alice and Padfoot haven't torn the kitchen apart," Remus suggested.

"That's probably a good idea," Lily smiled. "What were you reading?"

"Something I found on the shelf with the Muggle books. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I didn't get very far."

"You can borrow it," James shrugged. "Mum's the one that reads it, and she won't mind."

Remus grinned, holding up the book to show he had it, "Thanks, I was counting on that. You know how I hate not finishing books."

"Yeah, you bit Sirius in second-year when we tried to carry you downstairs to dinner while you were finishing your last chapter," James grinned. "I'm just glad you bit him and not me."

"You just tried to carry me," Remus laughed. "Sirius was trying to take the book away."

"Ah, that would explain it then," James nodded, putting an arm around Lily's shoulders. She smiled up at him as the trio stepped into the kitchen, just in time to witness Sirius' victory over Alice.

"Three out of five then?" Alice asked, a competitive glint in her eye.

"You're on!" Sirius quickly set up his chess pieces again and gave the command to start the game.

"It's going to be a long day," Lily muttered, sitting at the counter next to James.

"Yeah, but not a bad one," James smiled at her, giving her a quick peck on the nose.

It wasn't until shortly after noon that Lily was proved wrong about the day being long, for as she was just finishing her grilled cheese sandwich, (something she had introduced James and Sirius to with great success) Marlene burst through the door. Lily grinned to see her friend, but her mouth dropped to see who trailed in behind her, levitating a pair of trunks.

Lily dropped her glass, and the noise of it shattering caused Alice, Sirius, Remus, and James to look up sharply and see what had so flustered Lily. James glared at Marlene's companion and stepped protectively in front of Lily, cleaning up and repairing the glass with two waves of his wand.

"Oh, Lily!" Marlene exclaimed, ignoring the obvious tension in the air. She didn't even glance in Sirius' direction. "I've only just heard how you ran away from home. I would say you could come and stay at my house, but my parents have left me here for the foreseeable future as well."

"Oh, n-no," Lily stuttered, struggling to regain her composure. "It's quite alright. I'm fine staying here with James anyway."

"What is he doing here?" James demanded, glaring at the unwanted visitor. Sirius and Remus both stood up, anticipating trouble. Alice eyed everyone nervously, her eyes carefully searching Lily's face for a sign that she needed to step in.

"He's with me," Marlene replied coolly. "For Merlin's sake, sit down, Black!"

"I'll stand if I want to, McKinnon," Sirius snapped, eyeing Marlene appraisingly.

"He isn't welcome," James gave the visitor a steely glare.

"That's funny, because your mum said it was quite alright if my boyfriend stayed for awhile as well," Marlene took her boyfriend's hand and gave them all a look, as if daring them to question her.

"Boyfriend!" Sirius yelped.

"That's what I just said, Black."

"Did you tell her who he was?" James crossed his arms, ignoring the exchange between Marlene and Sirius.

"I didn't want to bore her with all the petty details. I think she has enough to worry about right now. Anyway, we're all adults; we can handle it."

James opened his mouth to say something, but Lily laid a hand on his arm to stop him. Instead, Lily stepped out from behind him and extended her hand, "Adam Becker, I trust you've been well?"

Instead, Lily stepped out from behind him and extended her hand, "Adam Becker, I trust you've been well?"

* * *

**_AN/ hahaha! How's that for a cliff hanger? I trust you all are properly looking forward to the next chapter. Let me know just how much you want to know what happens next by shooting me a review. I know there are 200 something of you with this on alert, so I'm hoping for tons of reviews this time!!!_**

**_By the way, those of you who have commented on Lily and James' strange form of 'casual dating', which isn't really casual at all, there will be more explanation of that in upcoming chapters. Just so you know._**

**_Love from,_**

**_MotherCrumpet_**


	35. Chapter 35: Psychotic Breakdown

_So, at the end of the last chapter, it pretty much sucked to be Lily. Not going to lie. Anywho, let's see how our favorite redhead handles Adam... and Marlene._

_Ready, set, READ!!!_

* * *

Instead, Lily stepped out from behind him and extended her hand, "Adam Becker, I trust you've been well?"

"Erm, yes, actually." Adam replied, speaking for the first time. "I start my job at the ministry the same day you all go back to Hogwarts."

"Adam's in the minister's department." Marlene smiled.

"That's great." Lily turned to look at James, who quickly snapped his mouth shut, "James, would you help me take these trunks upstairs?"

"Oh, no, that's alright," Adam waved his hand dismissively, "I wouldn't want to be a bother. I know I'm not exactly the most welcome person."

"That's the understatement of the year." Sirius snorted. Remus elbowed him in the stomach to shut him up and Marlene glared at him. Alice, in turn, tried to hide her giggle by turning it into a violent coughing fit. Lily ignored them all, stomping on James' foot to get his attention.

"I have to insist, you're the guest Becker. Let me take them upstairs for you. Just wait down here with everyone else." James glanced at Lily, hoping this was what she was wanting him to say. She smiled and gave him a slight nod.

Adam shrugged and gestured to the trunks that rested on the ground, "If you insist, go right ahead."

"I would like my usual room!" Marlene called as James and Lily each levitated a trunk up the stairs.

James called loudly back to Marlene in the affirmative and turned to Lily, "What does she think she's doing?"

"She isn't doing it to hurt me, so calm down." Lily replied calmly, "I'm nearly positive that this is for Sirius' benefit."

"You mean, she's using Becker to make Sirius jealous? That sounds like a pretty dumb plan to me, especially when she could have used somebody safe, like Austin Hodges from Ravenclaw, with the same results."

"Austin Hodges doesn't appeal to Sirius' protective side." Lily sighed, "Although this would be so much easier if he'd just take the hint and seduce her already."

James nearly dropped his hold on the levitating trunks, "What!"

"Don't be such a baby James. Marlene clearly wanted Sirius to take the next step and he wasn't doing it. So, she broke up with him and is trying to get her point across in another way."

"Woah, go back a second." James let the trunks down with a thunk, "Marlene brought the guy that tried to rape you into my house because she wanted Sirius to take a page out of Becker's book?"

"Eh, you're getting the gist of it, but you're leaving out the finer details." Lily shrugged.

"Oh, right, sorry. I forgot the part about Marlene being your best friend and the part where you're my girlfriend type thing who happens to be currently living with me! Oh, and the part where you were upset about this same guy last night!"

"You forget that your mother has no idea who this guy is, and unless you want her to seriously chew you out and get Marlene in huge trouble with her parents, you have to keep it a secret." Lily smiled, "Oh, and the fact that your 'girlfriend type thing' is going to need a lot of comfort from you."

James' eyebrows shot up and he grinned eagerly for a second before his face went serious again, "Promise me that you'll lock your door at night."

"Hmm, I don't see why locking my door will help when I have no intention of sleeping by myself in that room. It would be a lot more effective to lock your door." Lily smiled innocently.

"Ha, that's a better answer than I was expecting."

"C'mon love, let's put these trunks away and go back downstairs before we miss the big fight."

"Between Sirius and Marlene? I think we would be able to hear that just fine from right here."

Lily gave him a quick peck on the lips before taking one of the trunks, "I'll just drop Adam's stuff in the guest wing, shall I?"

"Good thinking," James grinned widely as he took the other trunk to Marlene's usual room at the far end of the family wing, "He'll be the only one there. If Marlene asks, we're renovating."

"The Muggle way." Lily nodded with a grin. She bounced off to drop Adam's trunk in one of the less nice guest rooms and then swept back downstairs to the kitchen. She slid onto her stool at the counter next to James and pretended to be engrossed in Sirius and Alice's chess game, which was proving to take up the better part of the afternoon.

"Play again?" Sirius asked, looking at Alice across the chessboard. "You still could come back and win."

"Nah, I have to be getting home." Alice gave him an encouraging smile, "Frank's taking me out tonight."

"Sure," Sirius waved his wand and banished the chess set back to its place in the library. "Have fun."

Alice patted his arm comfortingly, "I will."

James looked up from where he was talking with Lily about funny things that had shown they were magical, "D'you think you and Frank could come over tomorrow?"

Alice gave him a look, her gaze flickering for an instant to Marlene and Adam who were working on Marlene's summer Transfiguration assignment together and then to Sirius who was scowling at the table like it had done him a personal wrong, "Ah, I'll let you know."

Lily gave her friend a quick hug, whispering, "Don't leave me with this all week!"

Alice grinned, pulling away and saying loudly, "Thanks Lily, I'm sure I'll have a grand time. And I think you and James are cuter than me and Frank, but that's just my personal opinion."

"I hate you." Lily murmured.

Alice just smiled wider and left with a wave.

"Remus, what's Em doing?" Lily asked, "I can't remember."

"She's in France." Remus replied, giving Lily a knowing look.

"Oh, that's right. Marlene, is Dorcas still in the Carribean?"

"Until next Thursday," Marlene answered, glancing up from her essay, "Why?"

"Nothing, I just thought she would like to come for the fun as well." Lily sat back down on her stool dejectedly.

"Aw, sorry love, but it seems you're stuck here suffering like the rest of us." James tweaked her cheek.

"I envy Sirius that apartment." Lily muttered darkly, "I wish some random family member of mine would kick the bucket and leave me with their fortune, nicely funding my mad dash from home."

James shook his head, "I wouldn't like that, because then you wouldn't be staying here with me."

"You could come visit I suppose, but I don't believe I'd let everyone come."

"Ah, that sounds splendid. A nice apartment away from this madness."

Lily suddenly brightened, "Sirius, I still haven't seen your apartment!"

Sirius snapped his head around to look at her, suddenly seeing a temporary way out of this awkward afternoon, "That's right Lily-rose, you haven't!"

"Can I come see it? I want to see your flying motorcycle as well. That's really some amazing charm work, I'm sure Professor Flitwick will want to hear all about it once we get back to Hogwarts."

James sent Lily a panicked look, "Uhm, you wouldn't mind if I came along too, would you Padfoot?"

"You should stay here with Moony, Prongs." Sirius replied with an evil grin.

Lily looked at James, who appeared as if he was on the verge of attacking Adam. "Er, Sirius, I think maybe Remus would be more comfortable alone in the library."

Remus, who had been shooting the lot of them dirty looks for conspiring to leave him, hopped up and started out of the room, "Thank you Lily, what a marvelous idea."

"Where are you all going?" Adam asked, looking up at them questioningly.

"Oh, um, er," Lily stuttered, reaching for James' hand, "I haven't seen Sirius' new apartment yet and he's awfully excited to show me…"

"Sorry, haven't got room for anybody else." Sirius said in a tone that made it obvious he wasn't sorry at all, "Lily's riding on the motorcycle with me and Prongsie'll fill up the sidecar with his gargantuan legs."

"You didn't bring that blasted motorbike!" Marlene exclaimed, addressing Sirius for the first time since she had snapped at him earlier. "You know I hate that bloody thing!"

"Well, you don't have to ride on it." Sirius snapped, "Lily-flower and Prongs do and I don't hear them complaining."

"Ugh!" Marlene slammed her book shut, "I hope the lot of you go, it will be so much more peaceful without any of you!"

"Don't go in the library then!" Sirius bellowed as Marlene stormed down the hall, Adam rushing after her, "Remus'll be a bother!"

"Well," Lily said after a moment, "I think that went remarkably better than it could have."

Sirius scowled, heading out the door, "She's the bloody nuisance. Nobody can stand to be in the same room as her."

James sighed, "I have a feeling it's going to be a long week."

Lily rubbed her temple, "I think maybe even going back home would be preferable to this."

James draped an arm around Lily, following his best friend out the door, "Somehow, it'll all end up worthwhile."

After the grand tour of Sirius' apartment, which seemed to brighten the Marauder up a good deal, the three headed back to James' house, Lily and James opting to apparate rather than fly on the motorbike a second time. Lily assured Sirius that she trusted his charm work, but she had been feeling a bit queasy. James just laughed in his best friend's face and told him that he didn't fancy dying today, thank you very much.

"James!" Mrs. Potter hissed as soon as her son walked through the door, "Why did you leave Marlene here?"

"She didn't want to go." James replied, giving his mother a curious look, "Why?"

Mrs. Potter pursed her lips, "I don't like that boyfriend of hers. You look out for him, James."

"I don't like him either, Mum." James glanced at Lily who was keeping her face diplomatically blank, "How'd tea go?"

"Oh! I had almost forgot!" Mrs. Potter exclaimed, "Lily, dear, your mother has agreed that Hogwarts should be plenty safe, but Albus and I both feel that perhaps you ought to remain here for the rest of the summer as she was still a bit touchy on the subject. I've brought you a letter from her, I set it on the little table in your room."

"Thank you Mrs. Potter."

"Oh, and Lily, you needn't feel it's necessary to make your bed. It looked almost as if no one had even slept in it! How do you get it so tidy?"

Lily caught James' eye and blushed slightly as he grinned knowingly, "It's just a simple flick of the wrist, really… Erm, I'm going to go have a look at that letter."

"Alright dear. Sirius, be a darling and rescue Remus from Marlene and whathisface? They've cornered him in the library, asking for help on some Muggle puzzle or another."

Sirius made a face, "Do I have to? Can't Prongs go?"

"Er, um, no I can't because, you see I…"

"I need him, Sirius." Lily took James' hand and pulled him towards the stairs, "There's no telling what might be in that letter."

"I can handle distraught Lily-flower just as well as Prongs can!" Sirius exclaimed.

"If you rescue Remus, I'll let you lick the brownie bowl." Mrs. Potter bribed.

"Oooh!" Sirius dashed off down the hallway, "MOONY!"

"You just have to know the right motive." Mrs. Potter laughed, waving her wand so that it began chopping up a loaf of bread.

"Let us know when dinner's ready, Mum." James called to his mother as he followed Lily up the stairs for the second time that day.

"That bed question, it's almost as if she knows!" Lily exclaimed as the couple walked side by side down the hallway.

"That we're sleeping together."

"We are not!" Lily exclaimed, "You'll give people the wrong impression."

"I never saw why people refer to it as sleeping together," James wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. "I mean, it's not as if you actually are getting much sleep."

"Eww, James!" Lily shoved him. He growled playfully at her and picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder. "James! Put me down!"

"No, you've been mean so I'm taking you to time out until you learn not to push people."

"You so deserved it." Lily muttered.

"Oh, I did, did I?" James asked, dropping her unceremoniously on her bed and beginning to tickle her.

Lily shrieked with laughter, "No, no! I'm sorry! I've learned my lesson!"

James stopped tickling her and plopped down next to her on the bed, "You're a fast learner, Miss Evans."

Lily stuck her tongue out, "Shows how much you know. I was just saying that to get you to stop tickling me."

"Why you!" James lunged at her to renew his tickling, but Lily darted under his arms, nabbing the letter from her mother that was sitting on the table.

"Promise to play nice and I'll let you read over my shoulder." Lily waved the letter in the air.

James grinned widely, "You have to come here for me to read over your shoulder."

Lily scrutinized him and wearily made her way over to him. She shrieked as he suddenly grabbed her waist and pulled her onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her waist. He kissed her collarbone and rested his chin on the top of her head. Lily snuggled deeper into his arms before opening the letter carefully. Her hands shook slightly as she started to read.

_My Dearest Daughter Lily,_

_As you know, I have spoken to your headmaster as well as a certain messy haired boy's mother. (Who is very charming, by the way. She obviously cares for you like she would her own daughter) After carefully explaining to me all the ways that he is planning to change the security of the castle and cause it to be impossible for such an event to happen again, I have decided that I trust your safety to your headmaster Albus Dumbledore. He was adamant that you should return to Hogwarts for your final term and I didn't have the heart to refuse those twinkling blue eyes of his. They seem to penetrate as if they can read your every thought._

_Even though I am convinced of your safety, I remind you to be careful in whom you associate with. I trust all of your friends and it seems to me that James and Sirius especially will be watching out for you carefully. Please, don't worry me by taking risks this year. All I ask is that you finish your final year in one piece._

_You father has a bit of a cough. It doesn't seem to want to go away. You know how he dislikes doctors. I believe that if it lingers for much longer I will have to insist he go get it checked out. I'm sure it's nothing, perhaps a sleight irritation._

_I miss you already, and I hope that you will be able to forgive me. I was only concerned for your safety. I think that maybe you should spend the rest of the summer at James', just in case I lose my mind and try to keep you home when I should be taking you to the train._

_With love and kisses,_

_Mum_

"There, that was nothing to worry about." James gave Lily a quick squeeze.

"Didn't you read that line about my dad having a cough?" Lily asked, worry in her voice, "You don't think it's anything serious, do you?"

"I'm sure your dad is fine." James replied soothingly, "Your mum seemed to think that nothing was wrong with him."

Lily sighed, "I just worry about them sometimes."

"That's only natural." James kissed Lily's jaw lightly. "So, what's the plan?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do I get to keep you for the rest of the summer? Or am I going to have to share you?"

"Your mum and my mum both want me to stay here, so I think that means I'm all yours."

"Mmm, good." James turned her so that he could kiss her properly on the mouth. "I like the sound of that. Tell you what, Saturday I'm taking you out for a nice dinner, just the two of us."

Lily smiled, "That sounds nice. What's the occasion?"

"I have a feeling we're going to need to get away from here by Saturday." James replied with a laugh, "They're already driving me crazy and we weren't even here most of the day!"

"JAMES!" Marlene screamed up the stairs, "Get your ugly and annoying best friend away from me! He's making fun of my boyfriend!"

Sirius shrieked, "You are going to wish you'd never said that! Everyone knows I'm not ugly, Miss ugly-pants! And you were making fun of my Moony!"

"Padfoot, never call me your Moony again," Remus cut in.

Marlene quickly drowned him out, "OH! You did not just say that!"

"Let me know when dinner's ready, Mrs. P. I'm leaving the war zone!" Remus yelled over Sirius and Marlene's shouts.

"Are you sure we can't just go tonight?" Lily asked grimacing as she turned toward the door.

"Sure sounds delightful, doesn't it?" James muttered.

"James, Lily, dinner's ready!" Mrs. Potter called up the stairs, the downstairs suddenly going silent.

"Merlin Mum, what did you do to them?" James asked as he and Lily made their way down the stairs.

Mrs. Potter gave her son a look, "Silencing Charm, but I want them fixed by the end of the week, or they'll both be out of my house!"

Marlene was chasing Sirius around the kitchen, Adam standing awkwardly in the corner. Remus came wandering in with a book in his hands, Sirius ran right into him, knocking both of them to the floor. Marlene landed on top of them with a silent shriek. James roared with laughter and Lily held onto the counter for support as she was in danger of falling over from laughing so hard.

Mrs. Potter waved her wand, setting the three back up on their feet. "Are you alright, Remus?"

"Yes, thank you Mrs. Potter." Remus examined the book to make sure it was still in pristine condition. "Your book seems to be fine too, I managed to avoid any bent pages."

"Why thank you Remus." Mrs. Potter waved her wand again, sending Sirius and Marlene into the dining room with a push, "I don't really care if either one of you is alright. And no, Sirius, I will not take the Silencing Charm off because I want to enjoy a nice peaceful dinner."

James followed Lily into the dining room, but his mother stopped him with a hand on his arm, "James, I mean it. They are driving me crazy! And who in the world is that boy with Marlene?"

James gave his mom a weary grin, "Padfoot and I don't like him?"

Mrs. Potter threw her hands up in the air, "This is the last time I let any of your friends stay without knowing who is fighting with whom. From now on, I think we'll just let Lily come, she's a nice considerate, polite guest."

"Oi!" Lily bellowed from the next room, "If you don't stop pinching each other I will separate the two of you! Merlin, behaving like two-year-olds. SIRIUS BLACK DON'T YOU DARE THROW THOSE MASHED POTATOES!!"

Lily stormed out of the dining room a second later, Remus hurrying after her. Lily wiped a glob of mashed potatoes off her face, "I think I'll just find something else to eat. I'm not really all that hungry come to think of it."

James picked another glob of potatoes out of Lily's hair, putting it in his mouth, "Excellent potatoes, Mum."

"Ooh, just wait until your father gets home. He won't have yelled at those two this much in years!" Mrs. Potter conjured a shield charm and stormed into the dining room. With a wave of her wand, the two teenagers were sent flying upstairs and shut in their rooms with a slamming of the door.

James peered into the dining room to see Adam in a fetal position under the dining room table. He beckoned the unwanted guest busting out laughing when a perfectly timed glob of macaroni and cheese fell from the ceiling, landing squarely on Adam's head as he crawled out from under the table.

Lily stifled a laugh as she too glanced into the dining room, "Do you need any help cleaning up, Mrs. Potter?"

"Oh, no thank you Lily." Mrs. Potter's eyes were glinting as she gazed at her lovely dining room, "I think I'll let Charlus see exactly what happened and then we'll clean it up. I almost hate to erase all trace of the greatest food fight this house has ever experienced."

Lily pulled out her own wand, waving it once so that the mashed potatoes disappeared from her head. "So, James, what's for dinner?"

James glanced at the oven as a timer went off, "I guess we're having cobbler."

"Ooh!" Remus exclaimed, "My favorite! I guess I didn't suffer through all of that for nothing."

Adam vanished the macaroni in his own hair, "I'm just going to go upstairs."

"Do you even know where your room is?" James asked, trying his best to be polite. Lily shook her head, thinking politeness was a hopeless case.

"Erm, I'll manage to find it." Adam dashed upstairs, apparently mortified at the events of the evening.

"Darn," Lily made a face, "I was so looking forward to spending a pleasant evening with my boyfriend, his two best friends, my best friend, and a rapist."

"You forget the ever complicated twist that is Sirius Black and Marlene McKinnon's loving relationship," Remus remarked dryly. "We could write a book."

"Nobody would want to read that." James cut into the cobbler, "It's so overly dramatic, they would never believe it."

Lily and Remus shrugged, each waiting eagerly for a piece of cobbler.

* * *

"Oh, for the love of Merlin!" James grabbed his wand and transfigured a piece of parchment into earplugs. He sighed, "That's better."

Lily bounded into his room, slamming the door shut behind her, "I can't take it anymore!"

James stared at her blankly, "Huh?"

"Their yelling is driving me up the wall!" Lily continued.

"I can't hear you. Why are you whispering, when they're yelling?"

"James, did you make magical earplugs to drown out their yelling?" Lily asked.

"What?"

Lily walked over to James and pulled out an earplug, "I said, I can't take it anymore, their yelling is driving me up the wall, James, did you make magical earplugs to drown out their yelling."

"Oh, right." James pulled out the second earplug, "I dunno what to do."

"I vote we lock them in a room and soundproof it. We'll leave them there until they can learn to get along again."

"What if they kill each other?" James asked.

Lily flinched as another particularly loud batch of yelling broke out, "Don't count your chickens before they hatch."

"Whasszat mean?"

"It means, only if we're lucky." Lily glared at the door as if it was personally offending her.

Suddenly Remus strode into the room. He slammed the door shut and placed a silencing charm on the door. "They are driving me batty! I'm sorry Prongs, but I can't stand it anymore. I'm going home, thanks for having me, I would say it's been swell, but it's really been hell."

"Moony, you can't leave us!" James pleaded.

"Oh no, don't play the pity card on this one Prongs, I'm going to kill someone, and it's not going to be me."

The door opened again with a bang, emitting Mrs. Potter. She too slammed the door shut and glared at it. "James, I can't take it anymore. I love both of them like my own children, but it's either them or me!"

James sighed, "Lily, you yell the best, how 'bout you take a crack at it."

"No you don't!" Lily exclaimed, "The last time I tried to yell at them, Sirius threw mashed potatoes at me."

"That was Monday!"

"There are probably a lot heavier objects for him to chuck at me in the Library!"

James groaned, "Fine, I'll take a jab at it. But if I'm not back in ten minutes…"

Lily rolled her eyes, "I'll come out of the safety of your room and save you."

James grinned, "That's my girl. Alright, wish me luck."

"Better you than me, mate." Remus clapped his friend on the back.

"Try not to break anything, dear." Mrs. Potter smiled encouragingly at her son.

James took a deep breath, opening the door. They all cringed as the sounds of Sirius and Marlene screaming at each other filled the room. The three breathed a sigh of relief as James shut the door again behind himself.

Mrs. Potter rubbed her temples, "I do believe I have the worst migraine imaginable."

Remus looked at Lily, "If he doesn't come back, are you going after him?"

"Not a chance." Lily remarked, plopping down at James' desk where he had just been sitting. "I'm quite content to live in this room for the rest of the summer."

"Yeah, didn't think so." Remus grinned.

Meanwhile, James had returned the earplugs to his ears. He pointed his wand at his throat muttering the spell that would magnify his voice, "PADFOOT, MARLENE, SHUT UP!"

The pair snapped their mouths closed and turned to look at him in shock.

"Thank you." James nodded, reversing the magnification. "You see, you two are droving everyone crazy. But, if you'd just follow me, I have the answer to all your problems in the Qudditch supply room outside."

Marlene and Sirius glanced at each other before immeadiately looking away. They followed James without saying a word, determined not to even look at each other. When they stepped into the Quidditch room, they both looked around eagerly.

"Prongs, there's nothing in here." Sirius frowned.

"What are you playing at, James?" Marlene asked suspiciously.

James slammed the door shut, locking them in with a complicated locking charm that only he could undo, "You two are going to stay in there until you can work this out."

"What!" Marlene screeched. One of the two began banging at the door wildly.

"You can't do this Prongs!"

"I'll tell your mother!"

"She'll thank me!" James shouted, slipping his wand into his pocket and walking back towards the house. "Ah, sweet, sweet silence."

Lily peered around the corner of the stairs, Remus leaning around her in an attempt to see the kitchen as well.

"I don't hear them." Lily whispered, as if her voice would trigger the yelling again.

"Me neither." Remus heaved a sigh of relief, "Thank Merlin for that."

Both flattened their body against the wall immediately as the door opened and closed again. Lily and Remus peered at each other anxiously.

"Who do you think it is?" She whispered as softly as possible.

"I vote we take them down with force if need be." Remus replied, placing himself in a fighting pose. "I just hope they haven't taken Prongs out."

Lily copied Remus' stance, shifting her weight from foot to foot. The pair backed up the stairs, poised at the top to jump whoever it was that had just come back into the house. They heard the first step on the stair.

"Wait until the creaky one." Lily instructed, "That's nearly at the top."

Remus nodded, tensed for the moment.

The creak sounded, Lily sprang around the corner, throwing herself on the person making their way up the stairs with a loud battle cry, "YAYAYAYAYA!"

Remus sprinted after her, determined to help her if need be. The person on the stairs let out a surprised bellow as Lily knocked him as well as herself flying back down the stairs.

"Lily?" James' voice exclaimed as he viewed the redhead who had landed on his stomach.

"James?" Lily asked incredulously, "I thought you were Sirius."

"Why were you going to jump Padfoot on the stairs?"

"He's driven me to a psychotic breakdown?" Lily smiled wearily, standing up and offering her hand to help James up. "Sorry about that. We thought they had eaten you or something. We were on our way to rescue you."

"In other words, you were getting food so that you didn't starve in my room." James replied, noticing Remus rolling around in laughter at the top of the stairs.

"Erm, yeah." Lily turned slightly pink. "So, what happened, where are they?"

"I took your advice and locked them in the Quidditch shed."

"You didn't!" Lily exclaimed, clapping her hands together in delight. "That's marvelous!"

Remus had regained some of his composure, coming down the stairs to join the pair, "What'd you do with Becker?"

"I haven't seen the guy." James replied with a shrug.

"Who cares," Lily added, "I certainly wouldn't mind never seeing that creep again."

"Hold on," Mrs. Potter stepped out of the stairway, "Why don't you like this guy?"

"Er, well…" Remus looked to James.

"You see, the thing is…" James glanced hopefully at Lily.

"Oh well, what h-happened was…" Lily looked to Remus.

"Today!" Mrs. Potter exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips sternly.

"He's the one that attacked Lily!" Remus burst, clapping his hands over his mouth. "AH! Sorry!"

"You let him into my house!" Mrs. Potter whirled on her son, who stepped back slightly.

"Erm."

"While your girlfriend who he attacked was staying with us for the summer?"

"Um."

"At least Sirius has the decency to be angry about it!" Mrs. Potter threw her hands up in the air, "What kind of a son did I raise? Not even looking after his own girlfriend's safety!"

"She's not exactly my girlfriend." James said hopefully.

Lily hit him, "Yeah James, what's wrong with you?"

"You're the one that told me to play nice! I told you to lock your doors at night!"

"I have been locking your door!" Lily clapped her hands over her mouth, "Oh God."

"Bloody Hell." James groaned.

"Rowena, Helga, and Godric!" Mrs. Potter's jaw dropped, "You two have been sleeping together?"

"We've been doing it since Lily's attack, it's really nothing new." James explained quickly.

"You what!"

Remus backed out of the kitchen, "I'm erm, I'm just gonna go do that thing…"

"You started sleeping with a girl right after she almost got raped!" Mrs. Potter sank into a chair, "Dear Merlin, I'm not old enough for grandkids. Well, I am, but they're not!"

"No, it's not like that Mrs. Potter." Lily explained hurriedly, turning a nasty shade of red, "You see, I was too scared to sleep in my own bed and so I was sleeping in James', because it seemed safer."

"And then, when she came here, she was too upset to be by herself. And then Becker came, and well, I didn't want her alone in case he tried something."

Mrs. Potter held up a hand, "Okay, okay, I understand. Nothing happened." She placed a hand on her chest and stood up, "I think I'm going to go take a nap. Hopefully, this will all have been a bad dream."

Lily looked horrified as she stood frozen in the middle of the kitchen. James mechanically reached for her hand to give it a reassuring squeeze.

"I cannot believe I said that." Lily gasped.

"I can't either." James agreed, "It went over better than I expected though."

"James I told your mother we were sleeping together!" Lily wailed, "She'll never like me again!"

James grinned, "That's where I think you're wrong. Once she gets over the shock, she'll be making suggestions as to what we should name her grandchildren."

"Oh my God!" Lily moaned. "I'm only seventeen! I'm not ready to be a mother!"

"Woah!" Alice exclaimed from the doorway, "Did we walk in at the wrong time!"

Lily turned to give her friend a horrified look and made a dash for the stairs. James pulled her back and wrapped his arms around her, laughing deeply. Lily joined in a second later, her face still buried deep in his chest. Alice and Frank looked at them, completely bewildered.

"So, about this baby?" Alice asked, "I'm going to be godmother, right? And my name will be the middle name if it's a girl? Or a boy even, really, I'm not picky."

"Wait," Frank said, extremely confused, "You aren't really pregnant, are you?"

James shook his head, "It's a long story. We'll tell it sometime when we can all use a good laugh."

"Well, in that case," Alice glanced at the door behind her, "There were some really odd noises coming from your Quidditch shed."

James moaned, "I locked Sirius and Marlene in there until they can sort through their issues. I hope they didn't break anything."

"Like each other." Lily muttered as the four headed out to check on Marlene and Sirius.

There were some odd noises coming from the shed, a couple crashes, a soft moaning noise. Alice and Lily shared a look, wondering exactly what was happening in there, and a the same time not wanting to find out.

"Er, Padfoot?" James called out, knocking on the door to the shed.

"Go away!" Sirius shouted in a gruff voice.

"Jeez, no need to be so nasty about it." James muttered, unlocking the door to the shed, "Erm, I vote we go back inside or something."

"Don't you want to find out what's going on?" Alice asked.

"Uh, I'd much rather not, thanks." Lily replied, sharing a look with James. "See, I told you."

James shuddered, "I'll never look at that shed quite the same."

"I never said you had to lock them in your precious Quidditch shed. That brilliant idea was all you."

James opened the door to his house, ushering everyone inside quickly, "So, what's the plan for the rest of the day?"

"I'm thinking Quidditch is out, then?" Frank laughed.

"Erm, yes. I'm thinking so too." James suppressed a shudder.

"Let's grab Remus and we'll stop by Em's before heading to Diagon Alley." Alice suggested, "Em was supposed to get back yesterday."

The other three agreed and headed through the house in search of Remus and then disappeared to Diagon Alley, completely forgetting that Adam Becker was still somewhere in the house.

* * *

_AN/ So, are the gang correct in assuming that Sirius and Marlene are back together? And will Mrs. Potter really start hinting about names for grandchildren? Will 'Lily's List' ever put in an appearance? You'll just have to wait until the next chapter(s) to see!_

_Haha, hope you enjoyed it!_

_Love From,_

_MotherCrumpet_


	36. Chapter 36: Official Girlfriend

_AN/ Sorry it's been so long guys. We're getting down to the wire before High School Musical opens on the 13th so we have practice every day. I'm only on my computer like twice a week and then not for very long._

_In this chapter, Lily and the girls confront Marlene. ENJOY!!!_

* * *

"I still say that chocolate ice cream is better than strawberry!" James waved his half eaten ice cream cone around to illustrate his point.

"No way!" Lily exclaimed, "Strawberry is the best, by far. Especially this kind, with the little dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate chips mixed in. Here, have a taste."

James took a taste of Lily's ice cream, "Oh! That is good!"

Lily stuck her tongue out, "told ya!"

James smirked, "You've got a bit of ice cream, right there."

"Mmm, Strawberry, my favorite." Lily grinned widely as she slowly licked the ice cream off of the corner of her mouth. James stared at her, completely forgetting his own ice cream for a moment. "Er, you're about to dump your chocolate ice cream all over the table, just so you know."

James sheepishly turned his attention back to eating his ice cream, "Where do you reckon Moony and Emmeline went?"

"Flourish and Blotts." Lily replied without missing a beat.

"Okay, Miss Evans, then where are Alice and Frank? Since you know where all of our friends are likely to be."

"Eeylops Owl Eporium," Lily grinned widely. "And then Madam Malkin's."

"I'm guessing Alice picked." James finished off his ice cream, "Mind if we-"

"Go to Quality Quidditch Supplies?" Lily asked with a smirk, "Of course not."

James gave her a look, "Maybe I wanted to go to Madam Malkin's as well."

"Nah, your dress robes still fit you. And even if they didn't, you wouldn't want to pick some new ones out. Your mum would do that for you."

"Look at that, Miss Lily Evans knows everything about all her friends. I bet you even know where Sirius is right now."

Lily's jaw dropped, "He's walking into Madam Malkin's."

"What?" James whipped around to look at the shop directly across the alley, "I thought he was, erm, catching up with Marlene."

"He doesn't look too thrilled." Lily winced, "Maybe we should dodge him."

"Nah, he knows where I sleep." James stood up and started for Madam Malkin's, Lily following close behind.

"Padfoot, what's wrong?" James asked as he caught a good look at his friend's face. "I thought you and Marlene were doing… erm, well."

"Are you kidding?" Sirius asked, giving his friend a glare, "She pushed me into the shelf and broke my arm. Then the case of Quidditch balls fell on me and knocked me out."

"Are you alright?" Lily immediately began to examine her friend for signs of injury. "I'm sorry Sirius, it was my idea. You two were driving me bonkers."

"It's alright Lily-flower. I just got a little banged up. Nothing serious."

"Then why do you look so… un-Padfoot-y?" James made a face.

"Walked into the living room, which was occupied by Marlene and lover-boy. Oh, and your mum asked me how long you two have been having -erm what was the word she used?- 'relations'. Plus my motorcycle was acting up and the water in my flat was on the fritz again."

"So, all in all, not the best of days?" Lily grimaced, "How about we all eat here instead of going back to James'?"

"Nah, I'm fine. Mrs. P wouldn't like it if we didn't show up anyway."

"She'd Avada me then and there," James muttered, "for leaving her with Marlene and Becker."

"Your dad would be home soon." Lily replied weakly, knowing that she would feel guilty if they didn't go back for dinner. "Ah well, we were going to head to Quality Quidditch Supplies, wanna come?"

"That would make my day." Sirius grinned, "I've been wanting a new broom servicing kit."

"Sorry about locking you in the Quidditch shed, mate." James said offhandedly, "It sounds like it didn't work the way it was meant to."

"Don't worry about it. I wasn't conscious for most of the time I was in there and when I was conscious, Marlene didn't yell at me because she felt guilty." Sirius paused for a second, "Just, don't ever do it again."

"Padfoot, how do you feel on the subject of ice cream flavors?"

"Ooh, chocolate chip cookie dough, all the way!"

"That counts as chocolate, right? So I win!"

"No way, Potter, chocolate chip cookie dough is vanilla based. You don't win anything!" Lily protested.

"Yeah, but it has chocolate in it, therefore I win by default." James stuck his tongue out.

"My favorite kind has chocolate in it too, but that doesn't make it chocolate ice cream." Lily countered, sticking her tongue out as well.

"How long have you two been arguing this?" Sirius asked, looking at his two friends.

"Erm, I'd say around thirty minutes?" Lily looked to James.

"Yepp, sounds about right." James nodded.

"Okay, just wondering. Carry on then." Sirius nodded, grinning as his best friends resumed their banter and wondering how he had ever missed that the fighting was their own weird way of flirting. He shook his head as Lily punched the air and did a victory dance, attracting a lot of attention. James laughed and opened the door to Quality Quidditch Supplies and the trio slipped inside the shop.

* * *

"Alright, Marlene Minerva McKinnon, I've been patient and waited for you to explain this, but now I'm tired of waiting!" Lily bellowed as she threw open the door to her friend's room and stepped inside. Alice, Dorcas and Emmeline stepped into the room behind her. Dorcas fixed her friend with an appraising stare and shut the door with a thump.

"What are you talking about?" Marlene asked, looking up from her magazine she sat reading by the window.

"We're talking about Adam Becker." Dorcas replied firmly. She had just gotten back from vacation and was not at all happy to hear that her best friend was dating someone who had nearly raped one of their other best friends.

Marlene looked pale, "Oh, er, right."

"Out with it." Lily demanded, hopping onto the bed and fixing Marlene with a stare, "We're ready to listen."

"See the thing is, at first Adam was just to piss Sirius off. Because I knew nobody other than Severus Snape or one of the other Slytherins would do the job quite as well, but now…" Marlene stared off into space, "He's really changed. You don't have any idea what he's like now."

"Has he?" Lily asked, with a frown. "Because Sirius saw him coming out of my room two nights ago."

"He was going to apologize." Marlene snapped. "He wanted to try and make things better between the two of you."

Lily sighed, "Marlene, I need you to explain this to me, alright? I'm trying to understand it, but I just can't. Let me understand."

Marlene looked at her friends, "You don't get it, do you?"

They shook their heads.

"I was never in love with Sirius, not really. I wanted to be, because he was such a decent guy, everything I wanted, courageous, not afraid to be himself, always stood up for what he believed in. But the truth was, I didn't get that tingly feeling in my stomach when he smiled at me, the way Em did with Remus. I thought at first that if I did things right, that feeling would come, but it didn't. So, I broke up with him the first time, thinking I would miss what I didn't have. I missed joking around with Sirius, but I didn't actually miss being with him. I got back with him all the same.

"After the last time, I went to see Mum at the Ministry, and ran into Adam. He asked if I was all right, and then if I wanted to get a quick bite of something. We had a real heart to heart, and he admitted that he had made mistakes, but he was doing everything he could to fix them. I was attracted to him, so I thought I'd give him a chance. He hasn't done anything, anything at all to betray my trust in him."

"Marlene, he didn't do anything bad at first when I was dating him." Lily pointed out, "What makes you think he changed?"

"Something in his voice, in his eyes when he looks at me." Marlene smiled.

Dorcas shared a look with Lily, "You're being careful, right?"

"I'm not stupid, Dorcas." Marlene snapped.

"I know that." Dorcas replied in a tone that made it clear she didn't appreciate Marlene's own tone, "I trust your judgment."

Marlene took a deep steadying breath, "How about you, Alice? Emmeline?"

The two nodded that they trusted her judgment. Then Marlene turned to Lily, "Lily? Do you trust my judgment? _I_ haven't ever been wrong about a person."

Lily closed her eyes, ignoring Marlene's jibe. "I trust your judgment, but I don't trust him. Promise me you'll be careful."

"I'm always careful, not as careful as you…" Marlene shrugged, trailing off.

Lily stood up angrily, "I have good reason to be careful! I tried to be nice about this, and all I get is a caustic reply. You know what? Fine! Talk to me when you're willing to be decent and not a moment before!"

"You're such a martyr." Marlene rolled her eyes, "Not everything is about you, Lily."

"I'm not the one trying to make it that way." Lily slammed the door shut, causing the other girls to jump.

Alice and Emmeline gave each other a look before following Lily to see if she was alright. Dorcas followed as well, "You know Marlene, sometimes you can be a real arse. Lily's just trying to protect you from getting hurt the way she did. You shouldn't bait her like that when she's just being a concerned friend."

"She's just jealous that I have Adam now." Marlene said in a voice that didn't sound too sure, "I don't need her patronizing."

"Something's changed about you this summer, Marlene McKinnon, and I'm not sure it was for the better." Dorcas said ominously before she left Marlene quite alone in her room.

* * *

"So, Lily." Sirius piped up.

"Go away Sirius, I don't want to talk about it."

"I thought we could-"

"No! Sirius I am not going to be the vice president of the 'Marlene McKinnon Haters Club'. I refuse."

"I think-"

"See, you've already said two words that mean I don't need to listen to anything else you say."

"What'd I say?"

"You said 'I think'. Which coming from you is an oxymoron."

"I am not an oxymoron! I'm just a regular moron!"

"…"

"Lily-rose? Where are you going?"

"To find someone intelligent… I think I may need to borrow your motorcycle."

"Hey!" James exclaimed, "I'm intelligent."

"That's debatable." Lily replied with a shrug. "Anyway, I was thinking that tonight was the night you promised me that we'd go out."

James grinned, "You're correct."

"Good, where are we going?"

"I'm not telling."

"Sirius, where is James taking me for dinner?" Lily asked, turning to her friend and giving him a winning smile.

"I'm not telling you." Sirius pouted, "You called me an oxymoron."

"Fine, Sirius you regular moron, where is James taking me for dinner?"

"That's better. Give your superiors of intelligence a little respect."

"Dinner, Sirius?"

"Oh, right. I dunno where he's taking you. He wouldn't tell me."

"Well, find out." Lily suggested. "Maybe I'll bring you back a cookie."

"OOOH!" Sirius pushed between Lily and James, "Hey Prongs? Where are you taking Lily for dinner?"

"Nice try Evans, but all I'm saying is that you should dress formal." James grinned, "See you later. I gotta go have a nice chat with Dad. Mum told him we were sleeping together and he wants to discuss it."

"Eww, I hate those talks." Lily muttered, "they're so awkward."

"Pretty sure he's going to congratulate me for finally landing you, but whatever." James shrugged.

"I'm not a plane!" Lily yelled after James, but the comment went right over his head.

"Whazzat?" Sirius asked, looking thoroughly confused.

"Never mind, oxymoron." Lily muttered, heading to her room to find something to wear.

"Hey! I resent that!" Sirius bellowed after her, "Jeez, no respect from any of them, I'm telling you!"

* * *

"Hey Lily-flower!" Sirius whistled as Lily stepped into the kitchen, "Prongs is going to die."

"I hope not, that'd sure put a damper on the evening." Lily replied, turning slightly pink as Sirius looked her over.

"Wow Lily, I've never seen you try so hard." Marlene commented as she came into the kitchen looking for Adam. "I guess you want the Potter fortune pretty badly."

Unfortunately for Marlene, not only was Sirius around and Adam not, but James had just come into the kitchen as well. "That is it. Marlene, I want you and Becker out of my house, right now."

"Your mum isn't going to like that one. I'm not going anywhere."

"She won't argue when I tell her what's been going on for the past week." James shot back.

"Nice try James, but I know for a fact she already knows everybody's history."

"Ah, but Mum doesn't know about the harassment of one of her guests at the hands of another. Do you remember that time she found out the Polish Minister of Magic was being harassed by the Iranian Minister of Magic for being muggleborn? It didn't go so well for the Iranian Minister if I recall correctly."

"I don't care that Lily is muggleborn. I care that she doesn't approve of my boyfriend and is telling me how to live my life."

"When did I ever tell you how to live your bloody life?" Lily broke in. Marlene opened her mouth but Lily held up a hand, "Whatever. You know what, I'm going to have a nice, pleasant evening, and I hope you are too. Sirius, I will see you tomorrow. Thank you for everything."

"Tell Mrs. P that I went home." Sirius said in Marlene's general direction.

"I still want you out." James growled as he held the door open for Lily and Sirius. "We'll just have to discuss it when I get back."

"See if I'm here when you get back. What with the way I've been treated!" Marlene stalked off up the stairs.

"I really hope she's been Imperiused." Sirius growled before stomping off in the direction of the front gate.

"Look, Lils, I'm sorry you're having such a rough summer. If there was anything more I could do to help, I would do it." James sighed, "First you run away from home, then your mum decides it might be best if you don't come back, and after all of that one of your best friends turns against you. Not exactly in the running for 'world's best summer', huh?"

"I agree with Sirius, she sure as hell had better be Imperisused with the way she's acting." Lily glared in the direction of the house and then sighed. "You can help, let's not talk about it at dinner, hmm?"

"Deal." James grinned, "You look as stunning as ever, by the way. Decided to forgo your signature color, then?"

"I thought emerald green was getting tiresome." Lily replied with a smile. "I just hope I don't spill anything on this dress."

James offered his arm and Lily took it, lifting the hem of her dress slightly so that it wouldn't get mussed up dragging on the ground. Her dress was fairly simple, a snow white chiffon with a ruched halter strap and ruched off the shoulder straps. The bodice was ruched, with criss-crossed ruching under the bust. An eye-catching silver broach sparkled from the center of the bust. Lily wore silver heels and earrings that matched the broach, with her hair pulled half-up in soft curls. Her makeup was natural looking, causing her true beauty to shine through. She smiled at James and he grinned back.

"You look dashing in that suit," Lily commented offhandedly. "I didn't realize you owned one like that."

"My dad insists that I have attractive muggle clothing," James explained, "Especially now that I'm dating someone who might give me cause to use it. Besides, we're going to a muggle restaurant tonight."

"Will you tell me where now?" Lily pleaded, "The suspense is killing me."

"It's the best Italian in Britain," James replied, "But that's all I'm saying. Now hold on tight so we can Apparate."

Lily wrapped her arms around James' torso tightly. He pulled her even closer before the two experienced the familiar squeezing sensation that came with Apparation. Lily closed her eyes, only to open them again in a park that seemed vaguely familiar.

"We're in Ireland, aren't we?"

"You've been here?" James asked with interest.

"We used to visit my grandparents here." Lily explained. "There's a pond just over that way where Petty and I used to feed the birds."

James and Lily walked arm-in-arm out of the park and across the street, "Voila, Romano's. I guarantee you there is no better Italian food to be found in all of Britain."

Lily looked at the restaurant, "Are you sure we're eating here? James, this is a really expensive place."

"And you're worth every penny." James replied easily as he nodded his thanks to the doorman who held the door open for them.

"James, I-"

"Ah, Master Potter, it is so good to see you. I was pleasantly surprised to see that you had made reservations other than for your parents' anniversary the 31st of July. I saved your usual table all the same. Nothing but the finest for my favorite family of customers." A kind looking man stepped up to the pair, shooing away the hostess that had brought menus and was ready to show the pair to their table, "No, no, Maria, I shall take care of Master Potter and his guest myself. If you would please follow me."

Lily turned a questioning gaze on James, who started after the man.

"How have you been Mister Romano?" James asked. "I believe the last time I saw you was at the beginning of the summer?"

"I have been splendid. Your family's loyal patronage has really attracted many prestigious looking patrons to my restaurant. Just look, the Minister himself is dining with his wife for their wedding anniversary tonight."

Lily looked with surprise on the Minister of Magic who sat in full muggle dress at a nearby table.

"And just the other day a famous American actress dropped in," Mister Romano continued, "She dined with one of Monaco's royal family and an English duke. Here is your table, Master Potter. If you need anything, please do not hesitate to ask."

"Thank you Mister Romano. I am sure everything will be as wonderful as always." James held out Lily's chair and then scooted it in like a proper gentleman. He then sat in his own chair and smiled at a flabbergasted Lily. "Overwhelmed?"

"A little bit, yes." Lily replied, looking at her surroundings. The pair sat at a secluded table in the corner. The table was next to a window that overlooked the entire Irish city of Dublin. Romano's and the park were situated just outside the main city, in a more upscale area of town. Dublin's lights twinkled back at Lily as she gazed at them with a smile on her face. "Are you planning on telling me the story of this place and your family's history? Obviously Romano's serves many notable wizarding as well as muggle patrons."

James smiled, "Romano's has a long history in my family. The current owner, Mister Nicolas Romano, is the fourth generation Romano. His great-grandfather had just opened Romano's when my grandparents began dating. My grandfather had been planning on proposing to my grandmother one night, but everything was going wrong. The new theatre show in London was a flop, it had begun to rain in Paris, and the restaurant in Dublin had given away their table.

"My grandparents were walking towards the park to head home when they spotted Romano's. It was my grandmother who suggested they go inside and give it a chance as they were both hungry. My grandfather agreed when he realized that Romano's was owned by an old Hogwarts acquaintance. When the food came, it was the best Italian they had ever eaten. Then, after a dessert of chocolate tall cake, my grandfather proposed, at this very table.

"My father grew up coming to Romano's for every special occasion. The Potter family was prestigious in the Wizarding community, and many of my grandparents friends began frequenting Romano's as well. It was only natural that Dad proposed to Mum here. Since this had become the Potter family's special table, he proposed at the same table as his own father had. The ring Mum wears has passed through the Potter family for generations.

"My family, and recently Padfoot, Moony, and sometimes Wormtail, have always come to Romano's several times a year. When I propose, I plan to do so with the same ring, at the same time, and in the same place as my father and grandfather before me proposed to my mother and grandmother. You would call it something of a family tradition I suppose. I guess it's a little corny, but…" James shrugged.

Lily squeezed his hand, "James Potter, that is the sweetest thing I have ever heard; I don't think it's corny at all."

James opened his mouth to say something, but stopped as the waiter approached the table, "How may I serve you this evening, Master Potter? Mistress Evans?"

After a wonderful dinner, Lily and James weren't quite ready to go back to life at the Potter house, so the strolled through the park across the street.

"This is our last year at Hogwarts." James pointed out sadly.

"I'm not sure if I should be excited or sad about that." Lily replied. "I love Hogwarts, but I'm also kind of ready to be out in the world. The whole school thing has lost much of its appeal."

"Seventh year means two of our year will become Head Students. Ten Galleons you're Head Girl."

"I dunno James, I think that Ravenclaw girl will get it. I'm probably not top of our class."

"You're the top of all of our classes!"

"Not Transfiguration, that's you." Lily pointed out, "and not History of Magic either. I find it too hard to pay any attention to Professor Binns."

"The monotone voice does kind of ruin the effect of bloody goblin wars, yes." James agreed. "And I'm not very far ahead of you in Transfig. You're second, I think."

Lily shrugged, "Whatever. It'd be nice to be Head, but I'm not particular. If I don't make Head Girl, I'm not going to implode or anything. I'll bet Remus makes Head Boy."

"Yeah, me too. I'm ahead of him in a couple classes, but Dumbledore'd have to be daft to make me Head after all my years of pranks." James laughed. Then he stopped walking, "You know, what we have going on isn't really what most people refer to as 'casual dating'."

Lily smiled, "What do they refer to it as then?"

"Love."

James leaned in and kissed Lily softly, cupping her face in his hands. She lay her hands on his chest lightly and kissed him back, slowly, gently. James snaked one arm around her waist as the pair broke apart, Lily smiling shyly.

"Mmm, you may have a point there." Lily replied, laying her head on James' shoulder. "How do you propose we fix that?"

James kissed the top of her head, "Well, the thing is, we made a deal that I wouldn't ask you out again until after school started and we were back at Hogwarts."

"I never thought I would see the day that a deal would keep James Potter from getting something he wanted." Lily teased.

"Who said anything about that? Lily Evans, would you forgive me for years of torment and stress and please make me the happiest man in the world by officially being my girlfriend?"

"Yes, James, I will be your 'official girlfriend'."

James stuck out his hand to shake on it, but Lily had another idea. Taking hold of his hand, she pulled him into a kiss to seal the deal. After the new couple had broken apart, Lily looked at James. "So, since I'm your 'official girlfriend', does that mean you have some 'unofficial girlfriends' hiding in your closet or something."

"Nah, 'course not." James teased, "They're in the larger guest bedrooms. They got too cramped in the closet."

"Ah, well, that's good for future reference anyways." Lily muttered, pretending to be jealous, "So I know where to direct my curses."

James laughed and Lily joined in, the happy couple both relieved that the other hadn't insisted on waiting until the new school year to be officially together. The pair talked and laughed late into the night, both forgetting their concerns about Marlene's recent behavior.

* * *

_Hehe haha hoho! How exciting. Only not much time left. I have to decide how to finish this story... hmmm, I'd better get on that. We all know that it can't just continue forever, even though I know some of you would like it to!_

_Love From,_

_MotherCrumpet_


	37. Chapter 37: The Return of the List

**_AN/ High School Musical went well, thanks to all of you who wished me luck. I would have posted this a few days ago, but it wouldn't upload for some reason. Anyways, here you go. Enjoy!_**

* * *

A week later, Marlene and Adam had left the Potter home, leaving a much less stressful environment behind. Lily and James had finished all of their schoolwork already, so all they had left to do was enjoy their summer together.

"Your letters got here this morning." Mrs. Potter said as Lily, James, Sirius, and Remus tromped in from a morning game of Quidditch. It was a close match as Lily and Remus were about the same level of hopelessness when it came to the magical sport. "Remus, Sirius, I never know how Dumbledore knows that you two are here, but yours arrived as well."

Lily took her letter from Mrs. Potter, giving James an excited look. He grinned at her as he took his own letter, mouthing, "Good luck."

"It feels heavy enough." Lily replied nervously.

"Just open it, Lils." James suggested.

"I'm sure you're Head Girl." Remus assured the redhead. "I heard that Sally Hanson from Ravenclaw flunked her Herbology exam last year."

"That's because one of the Slytherins said he'd give her to Old Voldy if she didn't trade exams and take his instead." Sirius explained, ripping open his own letter. "Excellent, I haven't been made anything!"

Lily took a deep breath and opened her letter slowly. A bright badge fell out into the palm of her hand. She flipped it over and grinned widely, "I'm Head Girl!"

"That's marvelous!" Mrs. Potter exclaimed, pushing her son out of the way to give his girlfriend a motherly hug, "Oh, we'll have to celebrate! Remus, make sure you're Head Boy before Twink and I start on the cake!"

"Vanilla cake with chocolate icing?" Remus asked.

"Whatever you'd like, dear." Mrs. Potter gestured for Remus to open his letter.

Remus grinned and ripped open the letter. Into his palm fell…. Nothing.

"Maybe the badge wasn't ready yet." Mrs. Potter said, looking confused, "Check the letter to see what Minerva says."

Remus scanned the letter, "It says that since I already have a Prefect's badge, I won't be needing a new one! I'm not Head Boy!"

"What!" Everyone else looked stunned.

"There has to be some mistake," Lily murmured. "Who d'you think got the badge instead?"

James shrugged, deciding to open his own letter and be sure he was Quidditch Captain again. As he opened the letter, something fell into his hand. "Hey Moony, I found your badge."

Remus whirled around to face James, snatching his letter out of his hands. He let out a curse that caused Mrs. Potter to scold him sharply, which he ignored, "Prongs, this isn't my badge. Dumbledore's gone completely daft and given my badge to you!"

"Let me see that!" James exclaimed, snatching his letter back from Remus. "Oh, Minnie says I'm still Quidditch Captain as well, so that's alright."

"James, you've been made Head Boy out of the blue and all you care about is that you're still Quidditch Captain?" Lily asked.

"Give me that letter." Mrs. Potter took the letter from her son, "Is this another one of your elaborate pranks, boys?"

"You got me, Mrs. P." Sirius replied, looking at the badge that James held in his hand, "It sure looks real. It looks like we really misjudged Wormtail's abilities."

"Peter didn't make this badge," Lily said softly, taking it in her hand, "It's real James. You're Head Boy."

"Eh, that's alright. Here you go Moony." James held the badge out to his friend, who looked at it as if it might give him the plague.

"I'm not taking your badge!" Remus shouted.

"Well, it would be dumb for me to give you the Captaincy. You don't even play Quidditch."

"I'll be Quidditch Captain." Sirius piped up.

"Sod off Padfoot."

"Jeez, I was just saying I'd take it if you were offering. Don't get so testy about it."

"Why would Dumbledore make you Head?" Remus exclaimed, nearly hysterical. "All you've done is torment the poor man!"

"Well, congratulations James," Mrs. Potter said over Remus' hysterical breakdown, "I think your father will want to celebrate."

"Really Mum, I don't think that's necessary." James replied, "I don't even want the position."

"You can't give it back!" Lily exclaimed, turning from her attempts to calm Remus down.

"Why not?"

"B-b-because… Oh, I don't know!"

"Because people would kill for that badge you're holding!" Remus wailed.

"Oh, quit being a girl, Moony. You sound like Marlene." Sirius snapped, pouting because nobody was paying him any attention.

Remus clamped his mouth shut immediately.

"Really Moony, you can just take it. If anyone asks, tell them I gave it to you."

Remus took a deep breath, "Prongs, you can't give me that badge. Dumbledore gave it to you, for whatever insane reason he had and I trust his judgment. You earned it, congratulations."

Lily grinned and gave James a huge hug, "Congratulations, James!"

Mrs. Potter sniffed and wiped her eyes, "My baby boy is all grown up! And he's Head Boy and Quidditch Captain! Wait until I tell all the Auror wives!"

"Mum!" James protested, but she was already headed off to brag about her son.

"How weird is it that the Heads are dating?" Sirius asked suddenly. "I mean, talk about eerie."

"How weird is it that Padfoot actually used the word 'eerie'?" James pointed out, "I mean, really now, since when does he know words?"

"Hey! I resent that!"

"Yeah, but it's true." Lily replied with a shrug. "Your vocabulary generally leaves something to be desired."

Remus glanced at the clock on the wall, "Eh, I'd better get a shower so I don't smell like grass, sweat, and blood when I show up at Em's house in an hour."

"You guys are mean." Sirius called as the other three headed off to get showers, leaving him alone in the kitchen, "Didn't even ask me if I got anything! For all you know I could be president!"

"There's no such thing, Sirius!" Lily called back.

"There could be." Sirius stuck out his tongue, "So NYAHH!"

"But there's not."

"I hate you, you fun-sucker-outer!"

"That's what I meant about your vocabulary. You aren't even using real words."

"When in doubt, make up a word. That's my motto." Sirius dashed after his friends, "Well, no, actually it's 'when life gives you cookies, eat them', but you get my point."

"Padfoot, just stop talking." James suggested.

Sirius shrugged, "Alright."

* * *

After their showers, Remus headed off to Emmeline's and Sirius disappeared to work on his flying motorcycle, "I've nearly worked all the kinks out!" James walked into Lily's room to see what she was up to.

"Hey." Lily greeted him with a smile, "Can you hand me that bottle of ink?"

"Sure, but it's empty." James replied, picking the ink bottle up off the little table between the door and the chair. "Whatcha doing?"

"I'm seeing what I need to get when I go to meet Alice and shop for Hogwarts stuff next week." Lily tossed the empty ink bottle into the trash, "I guess I need to get ink then."

"Looks like it," James picked up a crumpled piece of parchment that fluttered to the floor as Lily pulled her robes out of her trunk. "What's this?"

Lily glanced over, "I dunno? An old piece of parchment, from the looks of it I'd say it was from first year."

"Lily Evan's Long List of Changes James Potter Would Have to go Through in Order for Lily Evans to Date Him." James read. "You made a list?"

Lily dropped her robes and grabbed the paper. "You're kidding me! I thought this was long gone!"

"C'mon, let me see it. I want to know exactly how I changed between then and now so that I don't fuck it up by changing back." James reached around both sides of Lily and took the parchment back.

"We started it our very first night at Hogwarts." Lily warned, "You may not want to read it."

"Aw, Lils, you're afraid I'm going to make fun of you." James sat in the big chair and looked at the parchment. Lily perched on the arm of the chair, but James pulled her into his lap and rested his chin on the top of her head as he started to read the list:

"**Lily Evans's impossibly long list of changes James Potter would have to go through in order for Lily Evans to date him**

**(More commonly referred to as 'Lily's list')**

Lose the glasses, they make him look dumber than he already does

Make a top grade in the class

Talk about something other than Quidditch

Actually grow taller than Lily

Sustain a horrible Quidditch injury and not play in a game but go to the match and cheer the team on anyway

Refer to Alice Prewett as something other than 'Gideon and Fabian's sister' or the ever popular 'Prewett'

Stop messing up his already messy hair all the time so that it looks like he's just stepped off his broomstick

Learn to walk around the school instead of strutting everywhere

Get Remus Lupin out of trouble instead of into it

Date a girl other than a bimbo

Break up with girl mentioned in #10 for some _**good**_ reason other than 'she wasn't a good kisser'

Stop knicking school owned objects like that annoying snitch, especially since he's a Chaser

Stop flipping Severus Snape upside down and showing the school his knickers for no reason other than that Snape was born and Potter's mates were bored

Allow Remus Lupin to confess to Lily that Remus is, in fact, a werewolf

Confess that he's an animagi

Refer to Lily as 'Lily' instead of 'Evans'

Allow Lily to feel comfortable referring to him as 'James' instead of 'Potter'

Stop beating up Lily's 'boyfriends'

Stop asking Lily out in front of her 'boyfriend' or while she has one & Stop asking Lily out while he has a 'girlfriend'

Swear that he wasn't part of Sirius Black's bright idea to set Severus Snape on Remus Lupin while Remus was in his werewolf state

Stop smirking at anything that walks and falls in the category of girl like she's a hunk of meat

Stop smirking period, at least most of the time, sometimes it's cute

Get Frank Longbottom to ask Alice Prewett out

Invite Lily Evans to one of his parent's fancy parties he always brags about

Meet Petunia and decide to put up with her

Meet Lily's parents and they decide they like him

Get Sirius to meet Lily's parents and they decide they like Sirius

Get Remus to meet Lily's parents and they decide they like Remus

Get Peter to, well no, but get Frank and Alice to meet Lily's parents and they decide they like the two of them (As a couple, they've already met Alice and have decided they like her very much)

Get his parents to meet Lily's parents and invite them all to a casual dinner

Take Lily for a midnight broom ride

Finally, ask Lily out using a speech that proves that he really has conformed to all of the changes listed above and proves he doesn't want her as a trophy but truly loves her

And, most importantly, stop being a FILTY, IRROGANT, IMPOSSIBLE, ANNOYING, FILTHY, ROTTEN, TOERAG and DEFLATE HIS GALATIC SIZED EGO

I, Lily Evans, claim the right to adapt any of the changes on **Lily Evans's impossibly long list of changes James Potter would have to go through in order for Lily Evans to date him** at any time or to add to the list at any time with the approval of my best friend, Alice Prewett."

Lily covered her face, "I can't believe we wrote that."

"How did you manage to add all of these items to the list?" James asked in awe, "I mean we didn't learn those kinds of Charms until at least the third-year."

"It was easy. The list automatically added and crossed off items as they were needed. A simple charm, similar to the one on your Marauder's Map, was all it took."

"This is impressive Lils." James looked at the parchment, "but it looks like you shouldn't be dating me now."

"I don't have to follow that dumb list." Lily replied, "Wait, what wasn't crossed off?"

James peered at the list, "Ah, items 30 and 31 appear to need crossing off still. I believe I owe you one broom ride and one dinner with your parents."

Lily waved it off, "It doesn't matter."

"It matters to me." James replied, "Now that I know there's a list it makes it a hell of a lot easier to guess, but I want to do this right. All of it."

"The list is dumb; it's mainly from several years ago." Lily protested, "Really James, I'm happy the way things are."

"Lily, love, this list is not dumb. It helped you realize that I changed. Plus, I would have done both those things anyways; we'll just do them a little earlier now." James set the parchment on the table, "I think this proves you were as hopelessly infatuated with me as I was with you, from our very first kiss."

"I had almost forgotten about that." Lily laughed, "You wouldn't shut up."

"That's funny, because Moony, Padfoot, and Wormtail claim that I haven't shut up about you since."

Lily leaned back against James' chest. "You know what; I think that's when I first started to love you. But you'll never, ever hear me admit that again."

James laughed, "I'll never have to hear you say it; I'll just look at you and know."

"Well, the entire population of Hogwarts looks at you and knows that you first fell for me that day."

"Mmmhmm, and I don't care who knows it." James kissed Lily on the temple, "Now that I've finally got you, I don't plan on letting go."

Lily tried to stand up, "James, you have to let me go."

"Do you not listen to a word I say?"

"There's an owl." Lily pointed at the window.

James sighed and released his grip on his girlfriend's waist. "You make keeping promises difficult sometimes."

"I'll always come back." Lily promised absently as she opened the window and slipped the scroll off the owl's leg. "It's from Dorcas."

James sighed. Marlene had gone to Dorcas' after she left James' house, but she had been sneaking out every night to see Adam. Dorcas was getting fed up, and she had several small spats with Marlene.

Lily scanned the letter, "They've had a huge row and Marlene's disappeared. Dorcas went to her house to apologize, but she never went back there. Dorcas thinks she's living with Adam."

James shook his head, "Marlene is like my baby sister. I don't like seeing her dating that scum nearly as much as I hated watching you date him."

Lily took a deep breath, "I know where he lives."

James looked at her firmly, "No."

"James, it may be the only way to save Marlene. I don't want to lose her friendship. She's stood by me through some really rough situations. I owe the same to her."

"Lily, I don't want you putting yourself in danger."

"If it was me, what would you do?"

James sighed, "I'd go after you."

"Exactly." Lily laid the letter from Dorcas aside.

"But this is different."

Lily gave him a look, "James, I love you and I respect your opinion. But if I don't do this, then I'll always wonder if I could have saved my friendship with her."

James put his head in his hands, Lily crossed over and knelt beside him, "James, if you're this worried, then I won't go." She laid her hand on his knee gently. "I'm not going to go."

"No, go." James looked up at her, "but if she isn't there, or either of them tries to hurt you in any way, promise me you'll come back right away?"

"I promise."

"No waiting around, thinking they'll calm down?"

"I'll come straight back."

"Can Dorcas go with you?"

"No, Jay, it has to be only me."

"Yeah, I figured." James sighed, "I don't like it, but I don't want to be the reason you lose your friend."

"I'll spend all day with you today, and I'll go tomorrow morning." Lily took James' hands in hers and pulled him up out of the chair. "What do you want to do?"

"Other than you?" James laughed, as Lily pursed her lips. "How about we go for a swim?"

"No to the first one, yes to the second." Lily gave him a stern look. "I'm going to go change. You know the lock on my bathroom door doesn't work, don't even think about trying it."

James gave her a look, "Please, Lils, I'm not Sirius."

"When did Sirius peek through my bathroom door?" Lily made a face.

"One of my cousins or something was staying with us." James laughed. "She's some sort of model or something. Padfoot couldn't help himself."

"Well, I'm no model, so you shouldn't have trouble controlling yourself."

"You're right, you're much too pretty to be a model. Nobody would ever believe you really look like that when they saw your pictures."

"Mmm, remind me to reward you for your flattery later." Lily pushed James out the door. "Meet downstairs when we're ready?"

"See you in a minute." James gave her a peck on the lips and left to put his swim trunks on. Lily smiled widely as she shut the door. He always managed to say the most ridiculous things, but he always meant them.

Ten minutes later, Lily tromped down the stairs in her bathing suit with a white skirt and pink tank top pulled over top. "Ready to go?" Lily asked, sliding her sunglasses onto the top of her head.

James shook his head, "Sorry love, change of plans. Mum needs us to stay here because she's expecting an important owl, but she has to go pick up her dress robes for the ministry party she and dad are going to tonight."

Lily shrugged, "Alright. It's still your choice. What do you want to do?"

James looked thoughtful for a second, "Let's watch one of those Muggle moving picture stories!"

"A movie?" Lily laughed. "What are we going to watch it on?"

"Mum has an old projector." James replied, "And we could conjure a screen and a movie easily enough."

"Actually, I think I have my movies in my trunk." Lily replied, "I threw everything in there when I was leaving."

"Then let's go find a movie!" James exclaimed, causing Lily to laugh. She was still amused that something as simple as a movie could fill James with so much excitement. Especially when it took nothing short of an amazing game of Quidditch in the magical world to match the level of excitement produced.

Twenty minutes later, James was struggling to set up a projector screen and Lily was coming back downstairs with several movies in hand. She shook her head as James struggled to make the screen the right height and only succeeded in bopping himself in the chin.

"You're helpless when it comes to this sort of thing. Here, pick the movie." Lily handed James the movie cases and turned to the screen herself. She had it set up perfectly in the amount of time it took James to read the back of the first movie.

"Don't you have anything exciting?" James asked, making a face, "People don't really go around bursting into song randomly."

"They don't typically fight with beams of light that'll cut off your hand either." Lily pointed out, "Movies aren't supposed to be completely realistic. That's what makes them movies."

James stuck out his tongue, then held up a movie. "I want to watch this one."

Lily took it from him and laughed, "_101 Dalmatians_?"

"I like dogs." James shrugged, "Plus, the fat and skinny guys look pretty ferocious."

"James, honey, this is a kid's movie. It doesn't even have real people in it."

"So?"

Lily shrugged, "Okay, my childhood favorite it is." She popped the video into the VCR attached to the projector and plopped down on the floor beside James. She stretched out on her stomach, propping her head up on her hands.

James nudged her, "Look at the puppy!"

"Yeah, I see him James." Lily smiled at her boyfriend's obvious excitement over something as simple as an animated Disney movie. All of her friends had gotten over the excitement of them by age seven, and here he was, nearly eighteen, and pointing out Pongo like a two year old.

"Woah!" James exclaimed, "I didn't know that animated women could be so scary!"

Lily lay her head on James' shoulder and cuddled closer to him; perhaps they would make a day of it, just watching old Disney movies that she hadn't touched in years.

* * *

**_AN: By the way, I don't own Star Wars or 101 Dalmatians either. In case you were wondering. I'm pretty sure George Lucas doesn't write fanfiction and I'm positive that Walt Disney doesn't either seeing as how he is six feet under and has been for quite some time now._**

**_I hope you enjoyed it. There were a couple hints as to the events of the next chapters. How utterly exciting! But everything is winding down now. The story will end with their return to Hogwarts for seventh year. So just the rest of the summer to go!_**

**_Love From,_**

**_MotherCrumpet_**


	38. Chapter 38: Marlene's Story

_Sorry guys! Things have been terribly busy. Spring Break last week. woohoo. Getting back to school is pretty disagreeable though._

_I hope you hate Marlene a little less after this chapter..._

_ENJOY! :D_

Lily Evans took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. She wasn't quite sure if she wanted her friend to come to the door or if she'd rather her calling on the house was unobserved. When she heard light footsteps, too soft to be Adam's, her pulse quickened.

"Oh, it's you." Marlene started to shut the door as quickly as she had opened it, but Lily stuck her foot in the doorway to prevent it from opening.

"Please, Marlene, just listen to me?" Lily pleaded, searching her friend's eyes for something familiar, but they were blank.

Marlene looked Lily in the eyes, and something in her face seemed to melt. For a second, she was the Marlene that Lily knew and loved again. But only for a second, for her face immediately returned to the unfeeling mask it had recently become. "You shouldn't be here. You aren't welcome here, Lily Evans."

"Marlene, please." Lily begged, her emerald orbs welling with tears. "Just talk with me."

"Who is it?" A male voice asked from upstairs, Adam's voice. "It sounds like Evans. Let her in, you know He wants to meet her."

"No, it's just one of those crazy religious people." Marlene called back.

"Send them away then."

Marlene leaned closer to Lily to whisper in her ear before shutting the door in her friend's face.

* * *

_He's one of Them. I can't get out. Tell everyone I love them and I'm sorry._

Marlene's words would echo in Lily's head for the rest of her life. It was through broken sobs that she related the story of her encounter with Marlene to their friends that afternoon. James wrapped his arm around her and rubbed her back comfortingly. Dorcas, Emmeline, and Alice all started crying as Lily related the words that Marlene had whispered to her.

"There has to be something we can do." Sirius growled, quickly dabbing at his own eyes to be sure that nobody had spotted tears in his eyes.

"She sounded hopeless; almost like she wasn't even Marlene anymore." Lily choked. "Marlene is never hopeless."

"We'll go to Dumbledore, he'll know what to do." James stated firmly.

"I don't think Marlene would like that." Dorcas pointed out.

"Besides, we don't know where to find Dumbledore." Sirius added. "No, this is our battle. We need to plan and act quickly before Becker realizes we've been there and know."

"He'll come after her if she deserts." James said quietly. "Dad's told me horror stories about His followers that have tried to desert His service."

"I don't care about Moldy-Voldy!" Sirius bellowed, "I want the girl I love safely back here with me!"

"Padfoot-"

"Don't you 'Padfoot' me, Prongs! Or you Moony! If it was Lily, would you sit by and watch him control her? What if it was Emmeline stuck in the service of 'Lord Voldemort'? Would you even still be her then?"

James sighed and waved his hand in agreement, "What do you propose then?"

Sirius looked to Remus and Lily, "You two are the most likely to form something that won't get the lot of us killed in the process. Please?"

Lily nodded, standing up and crossing to James' desk to grab a quill, ink, and parchment. Remus bent his head close as he studied the map Lily was drawing of Adam's house. He nodded occasionally and asked a couple questions. The others left the room to get some food (Peter, Dorcas, Alice &Frank), joined in the plotting (Emmeline&James), or paced impatiently while occasionally stopping to punch something (Sirius). It was several hours later and had grown quite dark before Lily and Remus had come up with a basic plan. Then they took a break for dinner, a bathroom break, and a miniscule nap before sitting down to plan the finer points of the plot. Everything had to be absolutely perfect before they would let the others undertake the risky mission.

Sirius was the only other one awaked when Lily and Remus looked at each other, grinned, and nodded before shaking hands. He was instantly alert and drilling the pair on the plan before they even had a chance to blink.

"Get some sleep, Sirius. Everything is perfect." Lily rolled her eyes and waved her friend off to bed. "Nobody is going on this mission to rescue Marlene without plenty of rest and being told what to do and when to do it. Alright?"

Sirius grumbled, but headed off to the corner to sleep on a cot James had conjured up several hours ago. Nobody had wanted to be far from each other after the terrible news that they had received not too long ago, so all the seventh year Gryffindors were crashing on conjured cots in James' room. Lily rolled up the plans and stashed them in a box under James' bed before crawling into the bed beside him.

James stirred slightly as Lily nestled into his warm embrace. He wrapped his arms around her waist and murmured sleepily, "love you."

"Mmm, I love you too." Lily murmured back, already half asleep.

"Everything's planned out?"

"Mmhmm everything."

The next morning, their friends, who were eager to hear about their progress, woke Lily and Remus up at what the pair declared an ungodly hour. Remus rolled over and went back to sleep and Lily pointedly refused to talk about anything until she had drank enough coffee to feed an army. Then, she rolled over and tried to go back to sleep, but James picked her up out of the bed and deposited her in the window seat, promptly opening the blinds to let in the bright sun. She buried her face in his chest and pointed wildly at the curtains, signaling peace if he would just shut them for goodness sakes.

Sirius dove under the bed to fish out the box with the plans in it and practically chucked it at Lily. She glanced at him with concern, for it was obvious he had not gotten any sleep at all, and opened the box when he shook his head in reply. She pulled out the rolls of parchment and smoothed them out on the floor in front of her.

"I don't get it." Dorcas muttered, peering at the plans written in Remus' miniscule handwriting and Lily's neat loopy cursive.

Emmeline looked up at Lily from where she sat on the floor, "I think these are marvelous."

"Thanks Em." Lily replied, scooping the plans up from the ground and beginning to explain them to the others. She had just reached the most exciting point when the friends heard the clearing of a throat from the doorway. Lily was hugging one of the three people in the doorway before the others even had a chance to register who they were. Sirius hadn't even waited for Lily to let go before he flung his own arms around the person, causing her to look slightly stunned.

"Although that was an excellent plan, Ms. Evans, I do not think it will be necessary." None other than Albus Dumbledore was standing in James' doorway with Mrs. Potter and a slightly worse for the wear Marlene McKinnon.

James gave Marlene a quick squeeze before turning to Professor Dumbledore with curiosity, "Sir, if you don't mind me asking, what is going on?"

"I think that is a story for Ms. McKinnon to fill you in on." Dumbledore replied with a wink. "I will be downstairs taking that tea that Henrietta has kindly offered me when you feel the need to come and beg me to let you join as well."

"Join what sir?" Sirius asked, tearing his eyes away from Marlene for the first time.

Dumbledore just smiled and turned to Mrs. Potter, "Ah, I'm glad to see them so ready to believe their friend is still as good a person as she has always been."

Mrs. Potter smiled at her son and his friends before setting off down the hall, "How would you like that tea, Albus?"

"Marlene, I'm sorry!" Lily exclaimed. "I-I wish you could forgive me and we could be friends again."

"Lils, don't apologize. I'm the one that ought to be begging you to forgive me. I was a right old prick, and I hated every minute I was hurting you. I hope you'll understand why I had to do it after you hear the story."

Sirius took Marlene's hand and she smiled at him, saying in one look that she was sorry and she loved him more than anything. He squeezed her hand, and everyone settled down around the room to listen to Marlene's story:

"It was about a month and a half ago, that Professor Dumbledore showed up at my house. Sirius and I had just quarreled again, and somehow Dumbledore knew everything. He sat me down and told me about the Order of the Phoenix, a secret organization he was putting together to oppose Voldemort. He invited me to join, but he told me that I couldn't tell any of you, because it would put all of us in danger. You would be asked to join later, when you were needed.

"I was confused as to why I was the first one of us asked to join. I'm not the smartest, the quickest, or the best dueler, but Dumbledore said that I was perfect for the job they wanted me to do. I was supposed to be a spy, to keep watch over the suspected Death Eater activities, especially those of the recently graduated Hogwarts student, Adam Becker.

"I knew Adam was still obsessed with Lily, so I wondered why Dumbledore hadn't picked her. But I realized I didn't even have to ask that question because I already knew the answer. Lily would be in far too much trouble as a muggleborn among the ranks of Death Eaters. Plus, she and James were finally happy together, and Dumbledore wouldn't want to take away that happiness. Sirius and I were already having problems, but I knew he would take me back as soon as I asked.

"The first time I 'ran into' Adam, my heart was pounding. I was so nervous about making a mistake, but thankfully he just thought that his presence was flustering me. Dumbledore had planned the meeting perfectly; Adam asked me to have lunch with him and I was in.

"The thing is, I didn't only have to convince Adam I was crazy about him, I had to convince everyone else, my best friends, my boyfriend, even my own parents. It was hard to lie to you, and you were all suspicious at first, but after relentlessly defending him, you finally gave in. But the hardest part was when James locked me in the shed with Sirius. I had to lie through my teeth, and the only reason I could do it was because I knew that somehow I was doing the right thing. I was helping the Order find out what was going on in the ranks of Death Eaters.

"But then we fought, all of the girls against me. I saw the hurt in Lily's eyes, and it took everything I had to not break down and explain myself right then. I was actually relieved when James kicked me out of the house, because it would be easier to do my job without looking at Lily and Sirius and knowing that they were hurting because of my actions.

"I stayed with Dorcas for a while, but even that got to be too difficult. She confronted me about my sneaking out every night and that was my excuse to leave. I had to move in with Adam now, or it would grow suspicious. When I got there, it hit me for the first time that he was a Death Eater. That someone I had gone to school with was actually joining the ranks of this horrible bunch of killers. That very first night there, I witnessed a Death Eater initiation. They would not tell me the names of the initiates, but I was allowed to watch the ceremony. Voldemort himself branded the Dark Mark into their skin. All three of the initiates tried to hold in their screams as the Mark came to life for the first time, but it was impossible. Adam told me later that it was the most excruciating pain he had ever felt in his life, but that it would all be worth it in the end.

"A day or two later, in the middle of a meeting of Death Eaters planning a raid on some poor muggleborn's house, the doorbell rang. I went to answer the door, and my heart stopped when I saw Lily standing there. I knew that He wanted to meet her; Voldemort himself had expressed an interest in the talented muggleborn witch. So, hoping that she would go to Dumbledore, who would explain everything, I whispered that Adam was a Death Eater.

"Thankfully, the Order planned their own raid that night, for the middle of a huge Death Eater meeting that Adam would be hosting. The Aurors and Order members poured into the house and the Death Eaters were taken completely by surprise. One of the first ones in stunned me so that it wouldn't look like I was on their side. Everything had to be believable. They didn't actually catch anyone, but they know who to look for now.

Sirius looked concerned, "So what makes Dumbledore think they aren't going to come after you now? I know for a fact that Voldemort doesn't like deserters."

"The Order put my family in a safe house, just in case." Marlene replied. "I'm going to stay here for the rest of the summer. It'll look like I'm being held here against my will after being kicked out earlier in the summer."

"Sorry about that, by the way." James muttered. "How was I supposed to know you were just acting like a complete prat instead of actually becoming one?"

"I, for one, am relieved to know that our Marlene never changed." Dorcas grinned widely, giving her friend a fond wink, "I thought something fishy was going on when she suddenly spazzed after I'd known her my whole life."

Marlene laughed, "I'm glad you had faith in me Dorcas."

Suddenly, a thought occurred to Sirius, "Erm, Marlene?"

"Yeah?" Marlene suddenly sounded apprehensive.

"You had to pretend you were dating Becker."

"I don't want to talk about that part right now, Sirius." Marlene closed her eyes and turned her face away.

Lily's face fell, because she knew exactly what Marlene had gone through to help the Order. It was something she had gone through as well, only she didn't have the comfort of knowing it was somehow helping. Suddenly, Lily was standing up and saying, "What I want to know is why Dumbledore hasn't asked us to join the Order yet!"

The other friends all popped to their feet as well, throwing in their bits and pieces on the subject and then they were heading downstairs to demand that Dumbledore let them into the Order that very minute. Lily fell into step with Marlene, who was trailing at the back by herself as Sirius was leading the way downstairs.

"Thanks, Lil." Marlene wiped her eyes quickly, before anyone else could see that she was crying.

Lily just smiled and winked, "All I did was state my opinion on the subject."

Marlene smiled back, "When I'm ready to talk?"

"And not a second sooner." Lily nodded in reply, before leaving Marlene with Mrs. Potter and joining the others clustered around Dumbledore who were currently demanding passage into the Order of the Phoenix.

"I'll take all of you into the Order, of course." Dumbledore was saying.

"When?" Sirius asked.

"Saturday night is our next meeting. I'll come fetch you for the meeting myself. Be here ready to go by six-thirty." Dumbledore peered over his half-moon spectacles. "Any more questions?"

Everyone shook their heads, but Remus suddenly spoke up, "Why did you make Prongs Head Boy?"

"Honestly?" Dumbledore laughed, "I didn't think that Ms. Evans would see that they were perfect for each other until he was in a position of authority that he would live up to."

Lily blushed and James wrapped his arm around her waist, "Now that she has, you can give the position to Moony."

"I am afraid not, Mr. Potter." Dumbledore smiled again, "Sadly, you are stuck as Head Boy, in part because it would put Mr. Lupin in danger if someone on the wrong side of things figured out why their Head Boy kept disappearing during the month."

James paled slightly, "I hadn't thought about Moony being in danger because of his furry little problem."

"There are those on both sides who would wish him harm if they knew." Dumbledore glanced at his wrist, "Oh dear, is that the time? I must be off. I shall see you on Saturday, six thirty sharp. And thanks again for the tea, Henrietta."

"Anytime Albus," Mrs. Potter closed the kitchen door behind Dumbledore and turned to her flock of teenagers. "Now, I think that all this excitement has made you lot hungry for a big brunch and then a quiet afternoon of movies."

The Gryffindors agreed and sat down at the table where Mrs. Potter had laid out a huge brunch, not one of them ever letting Marlene out of their sight.

_Ah! I just finished the last chapter (two chapters and an epilogue left!) and I hope it's good, but it made me cry to write it. This story has been part of my life for so long... and so have all of you. I thank each and every one of you, from the loyal reviewers, to those that added it to a C2 or favorite, to those that placed it on alert or check regularly for an update, to those that silently and loyally read each chapter. If it weren't for you, I literaly wouldn't keep doing this. I love you all!_

Love From,  
MotherCrumpet


	39. Chapter 39: Left Untold

**_In the words of my favorite Harry Potter characters Oh Merlin! Only a chapter and an epilogue left!!_**

* * *

"What are you wearing to the meeting?" Alice asked Lily nervously on the Saturday they were supposed to meet Dumbledore and join the Order.

"Erm, jeans and a tee-shirt?" Lily looked at her friend. "Are you alright?"

"Oh, er, yeah," Alice replied distractedly. "Me too."

"Alice."

"Hmm?" Alice turned to look at her friend.

"Are you alright?"

"No," Alice sighed. She sat down on the bed and Lily followed suit. "I don't know about this 'Order of the Phoenix' thing. I mean, I'm only seventeen."

"Don't do anything now that you're going to regret," Lily replied understandingly. "If you aren't completely for the Order, then you shouldn't join."

"It isn't that," Alice pulled something out of her pocket. "It's this."

Lily's mouth dropped, "Alice? Is that what I think it is?"

"Frank proposed last week, the night before we found out that Marlene ran off to Adam's." Alice slipped the engagement ring onto her finger, "It was his mother's."

"The woman with the vulture hat?" Lily asked with a laugh, "Oh Alice, it's lovely. I'm so happy for you!"

"But with this war… I want to be able to have kids that don't have to grow up with some crazy running around killing muggleborns, but I also want to have kids with Frank. Kids need to grow up with both their father and their mother loving them." Alice looked at her ring for a moment and then at Lily, "I don't mean to be morbid, but doing this is a big risk."

"Oh Alice, I know exactly what you mean." Lily sighed as she looped her arm through her best friend's arm. "I'm not ready for kids now, but I do know that I want them with James. I want little green-eyed James Potters running around a cozy little house without fear of someone like Voldemort. There is nothing in this world that I want more, but Alice, I think we're going to have to fight for our future and theirs."

Alice looked down at her ring, back up at Lily and nodded. "I think you're right. I'm ready now."

"Good," Lily gave her friend a quick squeeze, "because it's time to go." Alice started to take her ring off, but Lily shook her head, "Leave it on. Everybody should know."

"I'm not sure if now is the time…" Alice barely glimpsed the ring and a huge smile crept across her face, "You know what? I think now is a lovely time."

Lily opened the door and the pair headed down to the kitchen to wait for Dumbledore. James was reading a letter as Lily stepped into the kitchen, but he hurriedly stuffed it into his pocket. "Hey, Lils, can I talk to you for a second?"

Lily looked concerned as James pulled her into the library and closed the door behind them. "What's going on?"

James sighed, "Lily Evans I love you."

"I know that and you know that I love you too. Where is this going?"

"Just bear with me for a second." James took a deep breath, "I don't want you joining the Order of the Phoenix."

"James don't be ridiculous!"

"Lils, listen to me for a second, please?" James paused while she nodded. "See, the thing is, I want to marry you someday, and when that day comes I want to have kids with you. I want little green-eyed James Potters running around all over the place, but for that to happen you have to be safe. This Order of the Phoenix is going to make us a target. If we both join, one of us is likely to be killed."

"James, we could fall off the couch while we were watching Disney movies and be killed. I know that you're worried; so am I. There is nothing that scares me more than the thought that I might have to live without you if something happens, but we have to do this. We have to fight for the world that we want our kids to live in."

James sighed and took Lily's hands, "I thought you might say that. But you have to promise me something right now."

"What is it?"

"If we have a kid and I die doing something for the Order, you have to leave the Order. You have to take our kid somewhere safe, far away from all of this."

"I promise, James, but only if you promise me the same thing."

James gave her hands a quick squeeze, "I promise, love."

Lily threw herself into James' arms and he hugged her tightly, suddenly afraid of the day that might come when he could hold her no longer. She kissed him on the cheek lightly before pulling back slightly so that she could see him. "Alice and Frank are engaged."

"No kidding?" James smiled, "Well, we can't let them beat us by too much, can we?"

Lily laughed, "I think we should wait James. At least until the end of the year."

"A lot can happen in a year, especially these days."

"We'll still be at Hogwarts. I never dreamed I'd be thinking about marrying you, especially not before I even graduated." Lily took James by the hand and started for the door, "We can talk about it later; right now we have to meet Dumbledore."

Everyone was clustered around Alice and Frank, admiring Alice's ring and offering congratulations. Lily and James grinned at each other before James made his way over to congratulate the couple and thump Frank on the back. It was only a moment later that Dumbledore arrived, looking very flustered.

"Lovely, everyone's here. Follow me then, and we'll be off." Dumbledore left the kitchen and stepped into a rather drizzly night. The teens all pulled their cloaks tight around themselves and followed their Headmaster through the wet night. He stopped just inside the edge of the Potter property and turned to look at his students. "Now, everyone listen closely. We're going to take this portkey in just a moment and head to the meeting place. Next time there's a meeting, you'll be able to Apparate there in small groups, alright?"

The Gryffindors nodded as the reached out to take the portkey. Alice hesitated for a split second before firmly grabbing hold of the portkey with one hand, and Frank with the other. Lily gave her a reassuring smile as she too took hold of the portkey. Quick as a wink, the portkey was off, causing the strange sensation around the naval as it was apt to do. The Gryffindors landed with a thump, only Dumbledore and James managing to stay on their feet as they were unceremoniously dropped at their destination.

"We're in Hogsmeade!" Dorcas exclaimed.

"Yes, we meet in a secret room in the Hogs Head." Dumbledore explained. "I'll take half of you in, and the rest will follow with Marlene in five minutes."

Dumbledore took Alice, Frank, Dorcas, Remus, and Emmeline with him, leaving James, Lily, Peter, and Sirius with Marlene. The five with Marlene sat on a soggy log just inside the edge of the forest, waiting for Marlene to decide it was time to go.

"What a night." Lily commented as a particularly large drip from one of the trees landed on her exposed neck.

Marlene made a face, "You don't even know the half of it."

"What do you mean?" Sirius asked, suddenly on the alert in case something was threatening his newly-returned girlfriend.

"Initiation, silly." Marlene laughed, "You're teenagers, so they'll probably give you some boring mission like heading up to the bar to get new drinks from Aberforth."

"Who's Aberforth?" James asked, looking confused.

"Dumbledore's brother." Marlene replied, "Kinda screwy in the head if you know what I mean."

Lily looked surprised, "I didn't know Dumbledore had a brother."

"Well, when your brother is stranger than you are, you tend to keep him a secret if you can." Marlene shrugged, "Besides, they're on the outs. C'mon, time to go."

The four stood up and started towards the Hogshead, Sirius walking next to Marlene, Peter with Lily and James on either side trailing behind. They reached the pub and Marlene opened the door.

"So, that's Aberforth then?" Peter asked, peering at the barman eagerly. "Yeah, I reckon he looks a tad like a loony."

"I dunno Pete," Lily replied, barely even glancing at Aberforth, "I always figured Dumbledore was a bit barmy as well, brilliant, but barmy."

James opened his mouth to comment, but Marlene shot him a look, "If you don't pay attention, how do you expect to get into the room again?"

James shut his mouth and watched dutifully as Marlene tapped seemingly random bricks on the right wall at the bottom of a short flight of stairs. "What was that? Left, middle, right, left, left, right, right, left, middle, right?"

"Yeah." Marlene replied as the wall was suddenly not very much of a wall, but more of an open doorway. "Go in."

The other four hurried into the doorway, but stopped short as they ran into a lonely portrait down a short hallway. "Password?"

"Dumbledore's Socks." Marlene said in a bored voice.

"Correct." The portrait replied, swinging open. "Hurry inside then."

The Gryffindors hurried through the portrait hole and into a hidden underground room where Order meetings were often conducted. It was rather less full than any of them, other than Marlene, had been expecting, but those that were there looked like quality people.

"Ah, there they are." Dumbledore said with a smile, beckoning them all in, "Just in time for the picture. Marlene, go fetch Aberforth, will you? No, never mind. Here he is."

"I don see the point of takin a picture when mos o us are jus gonna go die." Aberforth said in a cross voice.

"Say Pumpkin Juice!" Dumbledore exclaimed mere seconds before the camera went off. "What a lovely picture. I'll frame it and put it on my desk at the school."

"Um, sir, what exactly are we doing here?" James asked, looking around at the people. He recognized Alastor Moody, a slightly overzealous ace Auror that his dad worked with, as well as a few other people.

Dumbledore laughed, "Well, I thought we ought to kick off your membership with a bang. We've got cake and drinks and a congratulatory card for Frank and Alice."

"How did you know?" Alice exclaimed, taking the card that Dumbledore handed her.

He just smiled in reply, "Some secrets are better left untold."

* * *

"Okay, what is it?" Lily asked James suddenly one day, putting down the book she was reading and looking at him from her chair in his room.

"What is what?" James replied, lowering his Quidditch magazine and looking puzzled.

"You're planning something. I know it!" Lily exclaimed, pointing at him accusingly and beginning to tick points off her fingers, "You hid that letter on Saturday, I found you poking around my closet Sunday, yesterday you suddenly discovered an interest in cooking and were looking through cook books, and today you picked out an outfit for me to wear to dinner. I can't take it anymore! What is going on?"

James smiled, "I thought you would have broken by now, or figured it out."

"Figured what out?" Lily begged, crawling up beside him on the bed. "You can tell me James."

"I want it to be a surprise." James kissed her nose as she wrinkled it up in a pouty face. "Now, how about we do that thing today that I've been wanting to do?"

"James, we are not having sex in your parents' house, especially not in the middle of the day when our nosy friends could and would walk in on us."

"That's not what I was talking about, but if you're so hung up on us having sex, then I'm pretty sure that I can arrange it so that we don't get walked in on." James waggled his eyebrows and Lily hit him.

"You're an arse and I don't know why I date you."

"Because I'm amazing, know everything you like, and you love me?"

"Then you ought to already know that I don't like surprises." Lily countered with a triumphant grin.

"Nice try, Lilikins, but I'm not telling you. Now, unless you want to change your mind on that sex thing, I think it's time for us to head to Diagon Alley."

"Oh, that thing that you wanted to do." Lily turned slightly pink. "I thought you meant the other one."

"You?" James laughed. "No, I'm willing to wait for that one, this thing that I want to do needs to be done now."

"Why are we going to Diagon Alley again?" Lily asked as she looked around the room for her shoes. She found one under the bed and the other where James had thrown it across the room the other day.

"You need a new set of dress robes and I need to pick something up."

"What d'you need to pick up?" Lily asked, looking around the room again, this time for her wand. James pointed to the table next to her side of the bed. With a grin of thanks she picked it up and slipped it into her pocket.

"I can't tell you, it'll ruin the surprise."

"Then why am I coming with you?"

James wiggled his eyebrows, "So we can do things that we can't ever manage to do here."

"We're eating ice cream!" Lily threw her arms around James' neck. "Yay!"

"I still can't believe Sirius ate it all." James muttered darkly after confirming Lily's guess with a nod.

"I can." Lily made a face as if trying to forget a memory she would rather not remember, "It was rather repulsive, you're lucky you were spared the sight."

James grabbed his own wand from the bedside table and dragged Lily out the door, "C'mon! And get the good kind of ice cream this time!"

Later, after James had gotten his mysterious package, Lily had gotten her dress robes, and the pair had both eaten their favorite kind of ice cream, they made their way back to the Potter house.

James pushed Lily towards the stairs, "Lily, go put on that outfit I picked for you to wear to dinner."

"What are you planning?" Lily pouted, giving James a pleading look.

"That's for me to know and you to find out." James replied, with a grin. "Be ready at six-thirty; I'll come get you from your room!"

"That's two hours from now!" Lily exclaimed. "Why do I have to go now?"

James pushed Lily to the stairs a second time as the doorbell rang, "If I told you that, it wouldn't be a secret anymore."

"Exactly!" Lily called back down the stairs as she headed into her room to get dressed like James had asked. "What is he up to?"

James dashed to meet the guests at the front door, "Sorry, I was just getting Lily upstairs. She's been trying to get me to tell her what's going on all day."

Mrs. Evans laughed, "That sounds like Lily. Now, we couldn't convince Petunia to come to dinner, but I don't think that'll upset Lily too much."

"She'll be glad to see you," James replied honestly, "She's really missed you."

"We've missed our oldest daughter as well," Mr. Evans placed a hand on his wife's shoulder, "Now, where are those parents of yours that Lily could not stop talking about?"

Just then, Mrs. Potter came into the foyer, "Ah, I thought I heard the bell! I'm so glad that you could come for dinner!" Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter embraced each other and then Mrs. Potter turned to Mr. Evans, and pulled him into a hug as well. "You already seem like family. Lily is a wonderful girl, and I feel almost as if she were my own daughter. I absolutely cannot wait for grandchildren!"

James turned a funny shade of pink and excused himself to see about dinner while Mr. Evans looked overwhelmed at the thought of his oldest daughter having children already. Mrs. Evans, however, looked simply delighted at the thought, "It will be nice to have children running around the house again. But I do hope they wait until they're properly settled after school to settle down and start a family."

"Where are my manners? Come in, come in! Harold should be on his way home. Normally we'd have teenagers running all over the house, but Marlene is staying with her parents tonight and James managed to talk everyone else into letting him spend one day with just Lily. They don't get much alone time since they're so closely knit." Mrs. Potter led the Evanses into a blue semi-formal sitting room. Twinky soon came by offering tea and coffee before disappearing off to make sure that James didn't burn the dinner, or the kitchen, to a crisp.

"I was so excited to hear that Lily was Head Girl," Mrs. Evans was saying as James popped in to let everyone know that dinner was ready. "She seemed surprised that Remus Lupin wasn't Head Boy, but at the same time thrilled that she would share the duty with James."

"James tried to give Remus his badge, the poor bloke," Mr. Potter, who had gotten there half an hour or so previously, replied with a laugh. "He didn't know what to do with it, after trying to turn his Hogwarts career into one big prank. Personally, I think Dumbledore was trying to force the Marauders to simmer down a little by putting half of them into leadership positions."

"I always thought that was it too Dad, but Dumbledore won't own up to it." James smiled at the sight of his parents and Lily's parents getting along so well. "Dinner's ready. I'm about to go fetch Lily. Hopefully she won't have caught on yet and her reaction will be worth the photographic evidence I plan to make of it."

Mrs. Potter stood up and waved James out of the room, "Go get Lily. The poor dear has been trying to amuse herself for hours without having a clue what was going on. She probably thinks we've forgotten about her. I'll take Laurel and John to the dining room."

James grinned as his dad gave him a thumbs-up. He was overly nervous for something that should be so easy, but the thing was, it wasn't something easy. He was surprising his girlfriend with the parents that she ran away from. Granted, it wasn't the same situation as Sirius was in, but still. It could go poorly.

"Finally!" Lily exclaimed as she bounded to plant a hello kiss on James, "I've only been waiting for like a billion hours!"

"It hasn't even been two." James laughed, "You look gorgeous, as always."

"You look nice too. That blue is a good color on you." Lily smoothed down the collar of James' shirt. "Now, are you going to tell me what's going on?"

James broke into a wide grin, "And ruin the surprise when we're so close to the end? I think not Ms. Evans."

Lily grabbed James' hand and pulled him out of the door, "then let's go Mr. Slowpoke! You lead, I don't know where we're going."

James led Lily down the stairs and into the kitchen, "Now close your eyes and give me your hands."

Lily sighed and closed her eyes, "If I weren't positive that you wouldn't hurt me, I wouldn't trust a Marauder to lead me blindly to a surprise."

"You'll like this one, trust me." James took both her hands and led her into the Dining Room. "Okay, open your eyes."

Lily opened her eyes and let out a squeal of delight as she dashed to hug her parents, "Mum! Dad!"

"I missed you Lily!" Mrs. Evans cried as she hugged her firstborn.

"Glad to see James here has been treating you right." Mr. Evans added, ruffling Lily's hair and thumping James on the back.

"How come I'm not allowed to do that?" James asked with a laugh.

Lily pursed her lips, "You're lucky that I'm glad to see my parents and am going to refrain from giving my typical response to that."

James opened his mouth to make a reply, but his mother cut him off, "Oy, no play fighting when the whole family is finally together, dinner will get cold."

"Let's talk about this family," Mrs. Evans looked at her daughter. "Please tell me you plan to graduate, get married, and settle down before starting a family."

"Mum!" Lily froze with her fork halfway to her mouth, a look of pure horror on her face.

"No, Lily, she's right, we ought to discuss this as a family." Mrs. Potter grinned, "We all know that you and James are perfect for each other. You won't marry anyone else."

"Mum," James gave his mother a look, "ix-nay on the arriage-may."

"Ah, Pig Latin," Mr. Evans observed with a nostalgic look, "one of the lost languages of childhood. I used it quite a lot in my day."

"I can't say I did." Mr. Potter replied, "I couldn't quite get the hang of speaking it fluently enough for it to be useful."

"Really, we're trying to have a discussion about the kids' future." Mrs. Evans scolded.

"We really don't have to do that." Lily said quickly.

James sighed, "Maybe they're right, Lils. We haven't really talked about it."

"I'm seventeen! I'm not ready to talk about it!" Lily exclaimed, suddenly something clicked in her head, "This is about the sleeping in James' room thing, isn't it?"

Mr. Evans looked quite alarmed, "What's that now? I may have to take back my favorable opinion on you James."

"Of course that's what this is about." Mrs. Evans shrugged, "If you're going to live together and sleep together, you'd best be ready for consequences."

"We aren't sleeping together, Mrs. Evans." James spoke up, as Lily looked far too distressed to be able to formulate a complete sentence. "After everything that's gone on, Lily doesn't feel safe alone at night, which is understandable."

"She's going to have to learn what it's like to sleep without you now that you've both joined the Order." Mrs. Potter pointed out, "as the wife of an auror, I know all about sleepless nights of worry."

Lily was fiddling with her napkin under the table, and her face was a funny shade of red. James glanced at her and then looked at her with more concern, "Lils, are you alright?"

Lily shook her head to clear her head, "I-I guess so. You know those times where you feel like something bad is going to happen, and there's that weird feeling in your stomach that won't go away?"

"Maybe you should go upstairs and get some rest, Lily." Mrs. Potter quickly came off the offensive, the concern for her future daughter-in-law evident in her voice.

"I'll come tuck you in, darling, just like when you were little," Mrs. Evans said with all the love of a concerned mother.

"No, I'm fine. Really." Lily placed her napkin on her lap and took a sip of her water, "I don't want to mess up this family dinner."

James rested his left hand on Lily's knee comfortingly as he opened his mouth to say something; he was interrupted, however, by a strange glowing Owl racing into the center of the room and beginning to speak in an Order member's voice, "The Dark Mark was spotted over the McKinnon safe-house. Dumbledore requests all members of the Order report at once as backup."

* * *

**_Woohoo!! I'm so excited. I hope you'll enjoy the next chapter as well. In fact, I know you will and won't at the same time. Oh, and by the way, I think I did change the names of James' parents. Oops, I was totally checking on the names when I was writing, but I couldn't find them so I decided to go back and fix them later and I forgot to. So... yeah. Sorry about that!_**

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	40. Chapter 40: Goodbye, Love

**_Please let me know if you cry while reading this chapter! If you don't then I haven't done my job properly. Anywho, sorry it's been so long, I've had computer issues and I was terrified that I had lost this story. You don't understand, I was about to flip a switch because I hadn't backed it up anywhere else. As soon as I finish the epilogue, that is the first thing I'm doing._**

**_Dedicated to all you faithful readers who love this story as much as I do, especially my beta. Thanks you guys!_**

* * *

Lily pulled her cloak more tightly around her as she and James attempted to make their way inconspicuously through the crowd of muggles on the street all pointing at the Dark Mark hovering above the safe house. The pair had summoned cloaks and sprinted out of the house without even a word to either pair of parents. Mr. and Mrs. Potter were not far behind them, leaving a very confused Mr. and Mrs. Evans in the dining room to eat dessert.

"Lils, this doesn't look good," James squeezed his girlfriend's hand. "I think we're going to have to use the invisibility cloak."

Lily nodded and ducked under the cloak with James. Then, the pair made their way quickly across the lawn and up to the house whose back door was swinging ominously. Lily grasped her wand tightly as James dropped the invisibility cloak onto the floor.

Lily couldn't suppress her gasp at the state that the kitchen was in. There was ripped wall paper and broken furniture scattered throughout the room. What looked like the majority of a family dinner was flung about the room. The pair had started creeping towards the next room to clear the house when they heard a noise from the stairs and whirled to face whoever or whatever had made it.

"You two are the first ones here." Professor Dumbledore stepped into the ruined kitchen looking somber.

"Sir, are they…" James couldn't bring himself to even suggest that the McKinnons might not be alright.

"I'm afraid, Mr. Potter, that we are too late," Dumbledore bowed his head, hiding his blue eyes that seemed to be glistening with unfallen tears.

Lily sat down quickly on the floor, since there were no chairs that would hold her weight, "All of them?"

Dumbledore closed his eyes in response, "I'm afraid it is my fault. I thought they would be safe here if He chose to enact revenge… I- I underestimated His reach."

James slammed his fist onto one of the counters, "This cannot be happening."

Mr. Potter stepped into the destroyed kitchen, "I don't suppose there is any good news, Albus."

"They were in and out before the alarms the McKinnons triggered went off. My charms around the perimeter had a hole in them or something. All Voldemort had to do was find it, and the whole family were sitting ducks."

Mrs. Potter held back her tears, Lily's respect for the woman growing even larger, "The Killing Curse?"

Dumbledore's eyes answered for him as he lowered them to the floor.

Mrs. Potter clapped her hand to her mouth, unable to contain a single sob.

Lily felt as if she might be sick, but she managed to keep relatively calm, "I have to see."

"Lily, honey, I don't think you should," Mrs. Potter fretted. "It might upset you."

"My best friend's whole family is dead," Lily stood up and looked at Dumbledore. "It won't be the last time I see it; I may even go the same way. I have to see."

Dumbledore nodded once, "Henrietta, Harold, and I will take care of the Dark Mark and the Muggles."

"When the others get here…" Lily trailed off, swallowing hard.

"Of course," Dumbledore ushered the reluctant Potters out of the house, leaving James and Lily alone.

The young couple didn't say anything, knowing that nothing they could say would help anyway. They stepped through the blasted door from the kitchen into the house's living room and spotted the youngest McKinnon, Benny, who was supposed to start Hogwarts that coming fall. Lily buried her face in James' chest for a second before she could look at the young victim.

"He looks like he's sleeping," She whispered, barely able to force the words out.

James' jaw tightened and he grabbed a blanket off the back of the couch, covering the young boy's body. He didn't say a word, taking Lily's hand and leading her out of the room. Mr. McKinnon's body was on the other side of the door into the foyer, trying in vain to block the stairs that the rest of his family had dashed up in hopes of escape. Mrs. McKinnon's body lay across the doorway, standing guard at one entrance to Benny's hiding place.

"Jay-" Lily stared at Mrs. McKinnon's body and began to shake uncontrollably. "James!"

James scooped her up in his arms and stepped over Mrs. McKinnon's body whispering to Lily, "Shh, shh, it'll be okay," even though they both knew nothing would be okay ever again.

He set her down again at the top of the stairs, and she, surprisingly enough, was able to hold up her own weight. James slowly pushed open the door that was hanging crooked on its hinges and stepped inside. Lily followed him, and immediately stepped out again in order to be sick in the hall.

Inside the room lay two bodies, Marlene's and her younger sister Sara's. Marlene had obviously died trying to protect Sara, as her body was just inside the room whereas Sara's was halfway out the window, with Marlene's broom laying a short distance from her right hand.

Lily let out a strangled sort of noise as she knelt beside her friend's body. She brushed Marlene's hair away from her face, but couldn't bring herself to close her greenish-gray eyes. They had always been so brimming with life, and now they stared back at her mockingly. James stood in the doorway, staring blankly, unable to comprehend that Marlene could be gone; that his childhood friend would never again tell him not to lie. She always could tell what he was thinking.

"I'll take care of Sara," Lily's voice held steady as she looked up at James from her position on the floor. "Marlene would want me to."

James nodded, "Padfoot will want to-" His voice cracked.

"Go outside with your parents," Lily stood up and ushered James from the room.

"B-but-"

"They need your help," Lily said firmly, knowing that James couldn't handle the sight of his old friend's lifeless body. "I can handle this."

James nodded and turned from Lily, slightly dazed. He headed back downstairs without really seeing anything. Lily took a steadying breath and stepped back into the room. Chin held high, she walked over to Sara's body and lovingly mended the girl's arm, which had been broken in her fall. She straightened the young girl's clothes and closed her eyes gently. Lily picked up the youthful victim and carried her to the bed, laying her gently to rest. With a kiss to her forehead, she turned her attentions to her fallen friend.

"Marlene," Lily whispered, "I'm sorry for everything that's happened, for not believing in you, for truly hating you when I thought you had betrayed me, for our rivalry all the while that we were friends. Please, please forgive me, please."

"She already has," Sirius stood in the doorway, his face weary but showing no signs of tears. "Believe me, Lily. She only hoped that you could forgive her."

Lily threw her arms around Sirius, "I do, I do, I do!" The tears that she held back for James' sake fell now of their own accord.

Sirius rubbed his friend's back, thankful that his best mate had been spared the pain ripping through his chest at that moment. But, somehow, Lily's tears and bone breaking hug gave him hope and support; they made him realize that he wasn't quite as alone as he felt. He was extremely thankful for the redhead that James loved so much at that moment, and he would never forget for the rest of his life how much he owed her for her simple words and actions.

Lily didn't let him go until she felt his grip on her loosen first. Then, she stepped back and looked at him, "She'd want you to do it."

Sirius looked completely lost for a moment, as if he couldn't even tell which way was up, "What if- What if I can't do it? If I can't let go?"

"You'll do the right thing. You love her; I know you'll be able to let go."

Sirius nodded, taking a steadying breath.

"Sirius?"

He looked back at Lily; her sad green eyes meeting his gray ones.

"I'll be right outside the door if you need me."

Sirius nodded again and stood there, frozen, until the door clicked shut softly behind her. Then, he made his way to where Lily had been kneeling when he had come in. Copying her actions, he thought desperately about what to say; words were completely futile for describing his feelings at the moment.

"I love you, Marlene. I kneel here, knowing you're gone, and I can't help thinking that maybe you were the lucky one. Your death proves this war is going to be costly, and I pray to Merlin that none of the people we love so much will follow you, but even this early that seems unrealistic. There was something else for me to do on this earth, and I won't see you again until I do it, but I hope that you will guide me so that I can be with you again as soon as I have done it. I sound hopelessly cheesy and cliché, but goodbye, love."

Sirius' hands didn't shake as he reached out and closed Marlene's eyes, he didn't falter as he gently cradled her lifeless body in his arms and laid her beside her sister on the bed, or even as he placed a last lingering kiss on her unresponding lips. No, the only sign of his grief was a single tear that fell onto the inside corner of her eye and ran down her face, as if the young couple that only death could divide was crying together for the possibly tragic futures of those they loved more than life itself.

**_Wahhh!! (That's me crying.) I can't believe I'm almost done with this! I'm working on another story, one that goes in a completely new direction because I want to try something new. _**

**_Please review, it means the world to me!_**

**_Love From,  
MotherCrumpet_**


	41. Chapter 41: Epilogue

**_Eugh, sorry about the wait, I've had numerous computer issues. _**

**_Here you go! Hope you enjoy! I'm working on some new stuff. I love you all and thanks for bearing with me for however long it's been now. You guys are brilliant!_**

* * *

"Well, here goes." Lily Evans took a deep breath and levitated her trunk off the Hogwarts Express for the last time. It had been a hard and emotional year for all the Hogwarts Students, but especially for the seventh year Gryfindors after the loss of their dear friend, Marlene McKinnon.

"Knut for your thoughts," Sirius commented as Lily glanced back at the train.

"I still expect her to burst into a room and brighten it up or jump out at me while I'm alone on my patrols."

"I can still feel her brighten up a room," Sirius smiled softly, thinking about one time where he could have sworn he felt the brush of her fingers on his cheek. "Besides Lily-flower, if she were to jump out at you while you were on patrols, the only thing she'd see would be you and Prongs eating each other's faces off. I reckon she'd be the scared one after that unpleasant experience."

"That was one time!" Lily exclaimed; Sirius gave her an odd look. "Okay, you caught me, it was once a week."

"I guess it's okay, since you are engaged and you're going to be living together. Speaking of lover-boy, where is he?"

"We're not engaged and I have no clue. I haven't seen him since we got on the train. Actually, now that you mention it, I'm kind of worried," Lily glanced around the platform for her boyfriend.

"What do you mean you haven't seen him since you got on the train?" Sirius asked, becoming concerned. "We thought he was with you."

"I was patrolling for most of the train ride because he was worried about you, so I assumed that's where he was. Where's Remus? Maybe he's seen him."

"Oy! Moony!" Sirius shouted, getting the attention of his friend and waving him over frantically to show that it was important and he should excuse himself from Emmeline's family immediately. "Moony, have you seen Prongs?"

"I thought he was with Lily," Remus looked around the platform. "You mean he's missing?"

"I haven't seen him since we got on the train!" Lily gripped Sirius' arm tightly, "Remus, he was supposed to be with you while I did his patrols!"

"Lily-rose, calm down, I'm sure he's around here somewhere," Sirius patted the distressed redhead's arm and peered around the platform for any sign of James.

"Guess who!" A pair of familiar hands covered Lily's eyes.

"James!" Lily exclaimed, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him quickly. Before he even had a chance to respond, she had slapped him in the chest. "Don't ever do that again!"

"Do what?" James asked, trying to figure out for the millionth time how she could change emotions so quickly.

"Don't you ever tell me you're going to be with the others when you aren't!" Lily hit him again. "I couldn't find you and neither Sirius nor Remus had seen you since we got on the train either. I was afraid something had happened."

James wrapped his arms around Lily and narrowed his eyes at Sirius and Remus mouthing sarcastically, "Thanks for covering." He rubbed his girlfriend's back, "Lily, love, I left something at Hogwarts and had to go back for it is all, then I apparated here after a nice conversation with Dumbledore. I should have made sure you knew where I was, I'm sorry."

Lily pulled back and blinked her glistening eyes, "Where are we staying tonight?"

"My parents are taking us all out for a celebratory dinner at Romano's," James replied with a guilty grin. "But our flat should be all ready for us tonight."

Lily spotted Mrs. Potter and dashed off to greet her, trying to drag James along with her.

"I'll be there in a second," James laughed, before turning to his two friends. "Wow, you two are never being put in charge of covering for me ever again."

"It was the first thing that popped into my head!" Sirius protested, "You're lucky I didn't say you were devoured by hungry Plutopians."

"I had to go along with his story," Remus shrugged. "Would you rather I had told the truth?"

"No," James sighed, "I want it to be a surprise, but I wish you hadn't scared her. She's going to be upset for the rest of the day."

"I wish I hadn't scared her either," Sirius muttered rubbing his arm. "My poor right forearm will never be the same again!"

"I'll see you tonight," Remus laughed. "Don't forget it, especially now that you've gone through all this trouble."

"How could I forget?" James swallowed nervously. "I haven't been able to think of anything else for weeks."

Remus waved and walked back over to Emmeline and her family. Em wrapped her arms around Remus' middle and his arm rested casually across her slender shoulders.

Sirius watched them sadly, "I'm going to my flat. I'll see you tonight?"

"Are you sure? Lily and I could use some help getting situated if you'd rather." James looked at his friend carefully.

"Nah, I'll see you later. You two will want some time together and I need some time by myself to think." Sirius levitated his trunk and walked away with a nod at Dorcas and her family on his way out.

"Hey Mum," James kissed his mother on the cheek and pretended like he hadn't seen her in months instead of mere minutes. "Where's Dad?"

"He's in the car. We thought we'd take you to your new flat. Lily's parents said they'd meet us at Romano's for dinner tonight." Mrs. Potter smiled up at her son happily.

"They said they've been wanting to go back for years," Lily smiled as James slipped his arm around her waist and waved his wand to levitate her trunk for her. "They're spending the whole week there."

"Oh good, then we won't have to figure out how to get them there," James winked at his mother and started off of the platform and back into King's Cross. "You'd better lead the way Mum, since I don't know where Dad is waiting with the car."

"Mrs. Potter? Where's your wedding ring?" Lily asked, noticing that the Potter engagement ring did not accompany the simple gold wedding band.

"Silly me, I was doing a spell for wart banishing and I poked somebody's wart a tad too enthusiastically--it's disgusting--but whatever was inside got all over my ring. It really needed to be cleaned anyway, so I thought I'd have it professionally done." Mrs. Potter waved at a car parked right in front of the exit. "James, if you'd just pop Lily's trunk in the back, we'll catch up on the way over to your new flat. I was there to get things arranged properly this morning, and it is just perfect for you two."

Lily slid into the backseat and James slid in beside her a second later. "Hey Dad."

"Hey James, been behaving yourself this year?" Mr. Potter grinned at his son in the rearview mirror.

"For the most part," James grinned. "There was this incident with Filch's cat, shaving cream balloons, and enchanted razors."

"Ah, that's my boy!"

"It was Lily's first detention," James laughed.

"I thought of the whole thing." Lily said proudly.

"James! You've corrupted the poor girl!" Mrs. Potter exclaimed. "Ooh! See, you're so close to the Muggle shopping district, Diagon Alley, and the Ministry. Your flat is prime real estate!"

"That's good news," Lily observed, thinking for a second. "I don't want to live in the middle of London for the rest of my life, just for now."

"In other words, until I start getting grandchildren!" Mrs. Potter laughed, pointing out the window at a building up ahead on the right. "There it is."

"Thanks for coming to get us," James hopped out of the car as his Dad pulled into a parallel parking space and stopped the car. "We'll see you tonight."

"Don't you want me to come give you the full tour?" Mrs. Potter called out the window as James hefted Lily's trunk out of the car. Lily slid out of the backseat looking confused as to James' hurry.

"We'll manage! See you tonight!" James waved at his parents, grabbed the trunk and hefted it through the door. Lily shrugged and waved as well before following James into the lobby of their new apartment building. It was only for members of the wizarding world, so the lobby was eons more attractive than the outside of the building. It would still look horribly run down to any muggle.

"What's the big hurry?" Lily asked as James pushed the button on the elevator, causing it to whisk upwards. "You seem a little on edge."

"Just a little on edge," James smiled. "I want everything to go smoothly. Plus, I hate when she starts talking about grandkids."

"Then I guess telling her that we've had sex would be a big no?" Lily teased. "She might get excited and think I'm pregnant."

"You aren't, are you?" James asked as the elevator stopped on their floor.

"Love, I couldn't be, remember? Plus, I would have told you," Lily surveyed him carefully. "Really, what's wrong? Are you feeling guilty because you scared me earlier?"

"Well, I wasn't," James levitated the trunk through the door, then scooped Lily up and carried her across the threshold. "Now I think I'm going to start."

"Don't worry about it," Lily pecked him on the lips. "Now, I want to see this flat that your Mum is so excited about."

"I think she's just excited because it only has the one bedroom." James muttered, gesturing up the stairs behind the couch.

Lily grabbed his hand and pulled him into the kitchen, "Just think, we have our own place! Nobody will walk in on us ever again!"

"I wouldn't count on it," James eyed the door suspiciously. "I have a feeling our friends will just burst in whenever they feel like it. It does give a false feeling of privacy though."

Lily tugged on his hand again, "Let's go try out our new bed."

James' eyes widened, "Why didn't we start living together sooner?"

Lily didn't respond, choosing instead to just kiss him, wrap her legs around his torso, and let him carry her upstairs.

After a lazy afternoon and quick showers, Lily and James got dressed to meet everyone at Romano's. James kept stuffing his hands in his pockets while he stood waiting for Lily to finish her hair, causing her to give him an odd look in the mirror.

"James, really, what is bothering you? You've been on edge all day," Lily adjusted the barrette pinning back soft red curls carefully and put on her earrings. "I really wish you would tell me."

"I think I'm just nervous," James shifted his weight. "I've never lived with a girl before."

"We basically have been living together for the past seven years, even if I hated you for at least half that time. If us living together is going to upset you, I can move in with Alice until she gets married or something."

"No, no, just give me a couple days," James grinned winningly at her in the mirror. "You ready?"

"Yes, I need you to fasten the clasp again though," Lily came over and handed James a silver heart-shaped locket, one that she had given Marlene for Christmas the year before her death. Sirius felt that Marlene would want Lily to have it back, so the redhead rarely took it off. Inside was a tiny moving picture of the girls on one side and the boys on the other.

"Marlene would like the fact that you always wear this necklace," James let the tips of his fingers gently brush her bare neck.

Lily let her hair fall and turned around, "I wear it all the time so that I never forget and she's always with me."

James softly kissed his girlfriend on the forehead. "Ready to go?"

Lily nodded and wrapped her arms tightly around James' middle so the couple could apparate to Romano's. When they got there, Lily spotted her parents and brought James with her over to greet them. For some reason she couldn't guess, they were both wearing identical grins from ear to ear and kept nodding at James.

When Sirius arrived, James excused himself and hurried over to his best friend. "Padfoot, I'm not sure I can do this. I mean, it's a huge step."

"Prongs, let me put it this way. Are you sure she's the one you want to be with forever?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I just…"

Sirius placed his hand on his best friend's shoulder, "Prongs, if you're sure that Lily is the right girl for you, then do this. You never know what's going to happen tomorrow. Just look in her eyes and say what you feel."

James nodded, trying to calm himself down. He didn't think Lily would refuse, but there was always that possibility. Soon, however, he relaxed and chatted amiably with all their friends and family. It wasn't long before everyone was there and Nicolas Romano was showing them to their seats. A small, black velvet box weighed down James' pocket.

As dinner proceeded, James grew steadily more and more distracted. It wasn't until after a dessert of chocolate tall cake, that Lily mentioned anything.

"James, are you sure you're feeling alright? You've been so quiet and strange all day," Lily peered at her boyfriend anxiously.

James grinned, "No, I'm fine. Actually, there is something I want to say."

A collective silence fell over the table, and everyone turned their smiles and attentions to James. Lily looked at them all curiously as she too set down her fork and turned her whole attentions to James.

James took a deep breath, "Lily, we've just come off a rough year, but we pulled through it together. I learned a lot this past year, but two things seem to be the most important. First of all, I learned that you are the most important thing to me. And since I missed my final Quidditch match because you were sick in the Hospital Wing, I don't think that rivalry for my heart is up for debate anymore. Second of all, and perhaps more important, I learned to take nothing for granted, especially not time with someone you love. Both these things brought us here, to Romano's, not just to celebrate the end of school, but, if you accept, for me to give you this." James pulled the box out of his pocket and slowly got down on one knee, "Lily Evans, will you marry me?"

Lily threw her arms tightly around James' neck almost, but not quite, knocking him down. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into a standing position before giving her a firm kiss on the lips. Lily was startled when not just her friends and family, but the majority of the restaurant broke into applause. But she beamed and blushed when James slipped the family ring onto her finger and kissed her again.

* * *

"Harry, why are you telling me this story?" Ginny asked. "I mean, all I wanted to know was how you found this restaurant. I didn't really need the entire account of your father's proposal."

"Yeah, get to the point already, mate!" Ron called, Hermione quickly stomped on his foot and told him sharply to shut up.

"The thing is, Gin, that I found that ring in my Gringotts account."

"Harry."

Harry held up his hand, "No, really Ginny, only a minute more, I swear. Hopefully you'll be glad you heard me out."

"Let the boy speak," Mr. Weasley clapped Harry on the back. "Go on Harry, best to just say it. I know you're nervous."

Harry swallowed, then got down on one knee, "Ginny Weasley, will you marry me?"

Ginny had just taken a large sip of water and spat it out all over his face, "What did you say?"

"What did he say?!" Ron hopped up out of his seat.

"Sit down, and don't be a prat," Hermione yanked Ron back into his seat. "This is why we didn't tell you."

Harry shot Ron a dirty look and Hermione a thankful one, "Ginny?"

"Merlin, Harry, did you ask me to marry you? Because either I've gone completely crazy hoping you'd propose and thought you actually did, or you've actually gone and done it."

Harry started to close the box and stand up, but Ginny threw her arms around him and kissed him, "Yes, Harry Potter, I'll marry you."

And with that, Harry James Potter slipped the same ring that his father, and his grandfather, and his great grandfather had all placed on the hands of their fiancées, along with a silent plea to Merlin for Ginny to relax her grip around his neck slightly as he was having trouble breathing.

* * *

**_Eh, I can't believe I finally finished my baby. I'm quite proud, I was beginning to think it would turn into the neverending story or something!_**

**_Thanks for all the love and support. I'm convinced you guys have helped me grow into a better author and a better person!_**

**_Love From,_**

**_MotherCrumpet_**


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